#11th Light Horse Regiment

[freetheshit-outofyou]

The charge of the 4th Australian Light Horse at Beersheba late in the afternoon of 31 October 1917, is remembered as the last great cavalry charge. The assault on Beersheba began at dawn with the infantry divisions of the British XX Corps attacking from the south and south-west. Despite artillery and air support, neither the infantry attacks from the south, or the Anzac Mounted Division’s attack from the east had succeeded in capturing Beersheba by mid-afternoon.

With time running out for the Australians to capture Beersheba and its wells before dark, Lieutenant General Harry Chauvel, the Australian commander of the Desert Mounted Corps, ordered Brigadier General William Grant, commanding the 4th Light Horse Brigade, to make a mounted attack directly towards the town. Chauvel knew, from aerial photographs, that the Turkish trenches in front of the town were not protected by barbed wire. However, German bombing had forced the 4th Brigade into a scattered formation and it was not until 4.50 pm that they were in position. The Brigade assembled behind rising ground 6 kilometres south-east of Beersheba with the 4th Light Horse Regiment on the right, the 12th Light Horse Regiment on the left and the 11th Light Horse Regiment in reserve.

The Australian Light Horse was to be used purely as cavalry for the first time. Although they were not equipped with cavalry sabres, the Turks who faced the long bayonets held by the Australians did not consider there was much difference between a charge by cavalry and a charge by mounted infantry. The Light Horse moved off at the trot, and almost at once quickened to a gallop. As they came over the top of the ridge and looked down the long, gentle open slope to Beersheba, they were seen by the Turkish gunners, who opened fire with shrapnel. But the pace was too fast for the gunners. After three kilometres Turkish machine-guns opened fire from the flank, but they were detected and silenced by British artillery. The rifle fire from the Turkish trenches was wild and high as the Light Horse approached. The front trench and the main trench were jumped and some men dismounted and then attacked the Turks with rifle and bayonet from the rear. Some galloped ahead to seize the rear trenches, while other squadrons galloped straight into Beersheba.

Nearly all the wells of Beersheba were intact and further water was available from a storm that had filled the pools. The 4th and 12th Light Horse casualties were thirty-one killed and thirty-six wounded; they captured over 700 men. The capture of Beersheba meant that the Gaza-Beersheba line was turned. Gaza fell a week later and on 9 December 1917, the British troops entered Jerusalem. Source

[18thfoot]

Michael Clarke was born on 4th March 1818 in Bohola, Castlebar, Co.Mayo and enlisted in the 8th Hussars in London on 2nd January 1836. He was promoted Sergeant in 1849 and Troop Sergeant-Major in March 1854. He went with his regiment to the Crimea in September 1854 where fought in the battles of the Alma and Balaclava, taking part in the Charge of the Light Brigade. Clarke served as Troop Sergeant Major of Captain Tomkinson’s Troop during the Charge. Of the 115 Officers and men of the 8th Hussars, 21 were killed and 20 wounded. The official casualty list, published in the London Gazette of 17th November 1854, records that Clarke was slightly wounded at Balaklava on 25th October 1854.

He remained in the Crimea until May 1856 and was then posted with his regiment to Ireland. Clarke was gazetted Cornet, without purchase, on 16th October 1857.

Around the time of his commission the 8th Hussars sailed for India, landing at Bombay in December 1857. Clarke served in India during the suppression of the Mutiny until 12th May 1862, after which he was stationed in the UK. He took part in the Battles of Kotah on 30th March 1858, Pupuldah, 8th April 1858, Rajpootanah, 15th December 1858, and the Pursuit of Rebels 15th December 1858 to 30th April 1859.

Clarke was appointed Adjutant on 24th November 1858. He was promoted Lieutenant (by purchase) on 11th May 1860. Back in the UK, a broken leg from a kick by a horse ended his cavalry career and he transferred as a Lieutenant to the 59th Foot on 15th March 1867. He was Adjutant, District Recruiting Staff, in Liverpool from 22nd April 1868 until 1st April 1870. He was promoted Captain on 1st April 1869 and was Acting District Paymaster at Inverness from 1st April 1870 until 30th September 1873. On 13th June 1874 Captain Clarke was appointed Paymaster, 2nd Battalion, 18th Foot He died while still serving, in Dublin, on 27th December 1878 and is buried in Grangegorman Military Cemetery, Dublin.

#18thfoot #royalirishregiment #crimeanwar #crimea #sebastopol #alma #balaclava #inkerman #india #indianmutiny #8thhussars #mayo Photo credit; https://www.jagermedals.com/_shop_section/medal_groups_and_gallantry/j3260a.html

[thisdayinwwi]

Jul 20 1919 in WWI

Pictures of some of the Aboriginal serviceman of the 11th Australian Light Horse Regiment who returned to Australia on the Troopship HMT Morvada #OnThisDay Jul 20 1919

AWM P00889.003 “ Studio portrait of 57247 Trooper (Tpr) Horace Thomas Dalton, 11th Light Horse Regiment. Tpr Dalton, of Dunwich, Qld, enlisted on 16 May 1918, and embarked for service overseas aboard HMAT Port Sydney (A15) from Sydney on 17 August 1918. After disembarking in Suez, Egypt, Tpr Dalton underwent training at the Australian Light Horse Remount Unit at Moascar, and was later hospitalised due to an ear infection. He returned to Australia on 20 July 1919. ”

AWM P00889.004 “ Studio portrait of 2436 Private (Pte) Harry C Murray, 11th Light Horse Regiment. Pte Murray of Taroom, Qld, worked as a stock and station hand prior to enlisting on 2 June 1917. He embarked for service overseas with the 11th Light Horse Regiment, 20th Reinforcements aboard HMAT Ulysses (A38) from Sydney on 19 December 1917. After undergoing training at the Australian Light Horse Remount Unit at Moascar, Pte Murray joined the 11th Light Horse Regiment at Belah, Palestine, on 9 March 1918. He returned to Australia on 20 July 1919. ”

AWM P00889.015 “ Portrait of 2428 Trooper (Tpr) Frank Fisher, an Aboriginal serviceman who was born at Claremont, Qld, but at the time of his enlistment was living with his second wife Esme, and three children from his first marriage, at the Barambah Settlement, Qld (renamed Cherbourg Aboriginal Settlement in 1931). Tpr Fisher enlisted in Brisbane on 16 August 1917 in the 28 Reinforcements to 11th Light Horse Regiment and embarked in Sydney on the troopship Ulysses (A38) on 19 December 1917. After landing at Suez he was transferred to the 4th Light Horse Training Regiment at Moascar, Egypt, and eventually to the 11th Light Horse Regiment on 13 April 1918. Tpr Fisher returned to Australia on the troopship Morvada sailing from Kantara on 20 July 1919. “

[PRG 1511/6] Troopship H. T. 'Morvada' arriving at Outer Harbor on 23 August 1919, with members of the 11th Light Horse (including Bert Penna, 5th Reinforcements) on board. The ship left Egypt on 20 July 1919.

The 11th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in August 1914, and assigned to the 4th Light Horse Brigade. The regiment fought against the forces of the Ottoman Empire, in Egypt, at Gallipoli, on the Sinai Peninsula, and in Palestine and Jordan.

[casbooks]

Books of 2023

Book 4 of 2023:

Title: Flashing Saber/Brennan’s War Authors: Matthew Brennan ISBN: 9781503102941 Tags: ACH-47 Guns-A-Go-Go Chinook, Forward Observer, FRA Groupement Mobile 100 (Indochina War), FSB Baldy (Vietnam War), FSB Bird (Vietnam War), FSB Cobra (Vietnam War), FSB English (Vietnam War), FSB Montezuma (Vietnam War), H-13 Sioux, KOR ROK Republic of Korea Army, LZ Hammond (Vietnam War), LZ Hereford (Vietnam War), LZ Montezuma (Vietnam War), LZ Porrazzo (Vietnam War), LZ Ross (Vietnam War), LZ Willy (Vietnam War), Military Police, OH-6, OV-1 Mohawk, UK Royal Malaysian Tracker School, US USA 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, US USA 12th Cavalry Regiment, US USA 173rd Airborne Brigade, US USA 196th Light Infantry Brigade, US USA 1st Cavalry Division, US USA 1st ID, US USA 21st Field Artillery Bn, US USA 227th Assault Helicopter Bn, US USA 35th Infantry Regiment, US USA 35th Infantry Regiment - 1/35, US USA 4th ID, US USA 9th Cavalry - 1st Squadron (Headhunters), US USA 9th Cavalry Regiment, US USA Combat Trackers - K9, US USA LRRP Team (Vietnam War), US USA United States Army, USA Capt. James Taylor (MOH) (Vietnam War), USAF Phu Cat Airbase (Vietnam War), VNM 1968 Tet Offensive (1968) (Vietnam War), VNM 506 Valley, VNM A Shau Valley, VNM An Khe, VNM An Lao, VNM An Loc, VNM Battle of Hue City (1968) (Tet Offensive) (Vietnam War), VNM Battle of Khe Sanh (1968) (Tet Offensive) (Vietnam War), VNM Binh An, VNM Binh Dinh Province, VNM Bong Son, VNM Bong Son River, VNM Bu Dop Special Forces Camp (Vietnam War), VNM Camp Evans (Vietnam War), VNM Camp Radcliff (Vietnam War), VNM Chu Lai, VNM CIA Phung Hoang / Phoenix Program (1965-1972) (Vietnam War), VNM Crow's Foot War Zone, VNM Da Nang, VNM Deo Mang, VNM Deo Mang pass, VNM DRV NVA 18th Regiment, VNM DRV NVA 18th Regiment - 27th Co, VNM DRV NVA 22nd Regiment, VNM DRV NVA 2nd Division, VNM DRV NVA 33rd Regiment, VNM DRV NVA 3rd Division, VNM DRV NVA 812th Regiment, VNM DRV NVA Sang Vao (Yellow Star) Division, VNM DRV VC 2nd Regiment, VNM Duc Pho, VNM Hiep Duc, VNM Ho Bo Woods, VNM Hon Kon (Hong Kong Mountain), VNM Hue, VNM Khe Sanh, VNM Kim Son, VNM Kontum, VNM Lang Vei Special Forces Camp (Vietnam War), VNM Loc Ninh, VNM LZ Ross, VNM Mang Yang Pass, VNM Million Dollar Hill, VNM Monument Hill, VNM Nui Ba Ra (Mountain of the Old Man), VNM Operation Cravy Horse (1966) (Vietnam War), VNM Operation Masher (1966) (Vietnam War), VNM Perfume River, VNM Phouc Vinh, VNM Pleiku, VNM Quan Loi, VNM Quang Tri, VNM Que Son Valley, VNM Route 1, VNM Route 14, VNM Route 19, VNM Rung Sat Special Zone, VNM RVN ARVN Army of the Republic of Vietnam, VNM RVN ARVN Vietnamese Rangers - Biet Dong Quan, VNM RVN RVNP Can Sat National Police, VNM Saigon, VNM Song Re, VNM Soui Ca Mountains, VNM Tam Ky, VNM Tan Son Nhut Air Base, VNM The Graveyard, VNM Tiger Mountains, VNM USMC DHCB Dong Ha Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM USMC KSCB Khe Sanh Combat Base (Vietnam War), VNM VC Valley, VNM Vietnam War (1955-1975), VNM Vinh Thanh Valley (Happy Valley), VNM War Zone C, VNM War Zone D, VNM French Indochina War (1946-1954) Rating: 5 Stars  Subject: Books.Military.20th-21st Century.Asia.Vietnam War.US Army.Infantry

Description: 

"The division's expendables." That's what one division commander called the 1/9th Cavalry Blue platoons during the Vietnam War. The Blues, as they were called, were perpetually understrength and considered to be acceptable losses in hopeless situations--but their amazingly successful record proved otherwise.

Flashing Saber is memoir about mortal combat with the First Air Cavalry Division's reconnaissance squadron. Included is the account of an air-ground raid that killed more high-ranking enemy officers than any similar engagement of the war: a full colonel, four majors and four senior captains.

An expansion and careful reworking of his previous work, Brennan's War, published in 1985, and in the vein of classic memoirs by Johnnie Clark and Frederick Downs, the book is a harrowing firsthand account of life and death in war.****

Review: I’ve read Brennan’s previous book, Brennan’s War shortly after it was published in 1985. A lot of what was in it stuck with me as a classic retelling of some ones honest look at their own experience, their failures/stupidity, and both good and bad choices. 

This version adds a lot more nuance and more understanding to what he experienced, and the added snippets add a lot to round out some of the people and tales without watering down the experiences or raw emotion.

His experiences are unique due to his circumstances, and most importantly, he has an excellent way of telling the story. It’s not just a cut and dry “i went here, I did this...” ... but he understands narrative, he understands human emotion, and he is able to convey things in a way many other authors of this genre actually fail to do. 

[greatworldwar2]

• Battle of Bardia

The Battle of Bardia was fought between January 3rd and 5th 1941, as part of Operation Compass, the first British military operation of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War.

Italy declared war on the United Kingdom on June 10th, 1940. Bordering on the Italian colony of Libya was the Kingdom of Egypt. Although a neutral country, Egypt was occupied by the British under the terms of the Anglo-Egyptian Treaty of 1936, which allowed British military forces to occupy Egypt if the Suez Canal was threatened. A series of cross-border raids and skirmishes began on the frontier between Libya and Egypt. On September 13th, 1940, an Italian force advanced across the frontier into Egypt, reaching Sidi Barrani on September 16th, where the advance was halted until logistical difficulties could be overcome. Italy's position in the centre of the Mediterranean made it unacceptably hazardous to send ships from Britain to Egypt via that route, so British reinforcements and supplies for the area had to travel around the Cape of Good Hope. For this reason, it was more convenient to reinforce General Sir Archibald Wavell's Middle East Command with troops from Australia, New Zealand and India. Nonetheless, even when Britain was threatened with invasion after the Battle of France. On December 9th, 1940 the Western Desert Force under the command of Major General Richard O'Connor attacked the Italian position at Sidi Barrani. The position was captured, 38,000 Italian soldiers were taken prisoner, and the remainder of the Italian force was driven back. The Western Desert Force pursued the Italians into Libya, and the 7th Armoured Division established itself to the west of Bardia, cutting off land communications between the strong Italian garrison there and Tobruk. On December 11th, Wavell decided to withdraw the 4th Indian Division and send it to the Sudan to participate in the East African Campaign. The 6th Australian Division (Major General Iven Mackay) was brought forward from Egypt to replace it and Mackay assumed command of the area on December 21st,1940.

After the disaster at Sidi Barrani and the withdrawal from Egypt, XXIII Corps (Generale di Corpo d'Armata (Lieutenant General) Annibale Bergonzoli) faced the British from within the strong defences of Bardia. Mussolini wrote to Bergonzoli, "I have given you a difficult task but one suited to your courage and experience as an old and intrepid soldier—the task of defending the fortress of Bardia to the last. I am certain that 'Electric Beard' and his brave soldiers will stand at whatever cost, faithful to the last." Bergonzoli replied: "I am aware of the honour and I have today repeated to my troops your message — simple and unequivocal. In Bardia we are and here we stay." Bergonzoli had approximately 45,000 defenders under his command. The Italian divisions defending the perimeter of Bardia included remnants of four divisions. Bergonzoli also had the remnants of the disbanded 64th "Catanzaro" Infantry Division, some 6,000 Frontier Guard (GaF) troops, three companies of Bersaglieri, part of the dismounted Vittorio Emanuele cavalry regiment and a machine gun company. These divisions guarded an 18-mile (29 km) perimeter which had an almost continuous antitank ditch, extensive barbed wire fence and a double row of strong points. The strong points were situated approximately 800-yard (730 m) apart. Each had its own antitank ditch, concealed by thin boards. They were each armed with one or two Cannone da 47/32 M35 (47 mm antitank guns) and two to four machine guns. The weapons were fired from concrete sided pits connected by trenches to a deep underground concrete bunker which offered protection from artillery fire.

Each post was occupied by a platoon or company. The inner row of posts were similar, except that they lacked the antitank ditches. The posts were numbered sequentially from south to north, with the outer posts bearing odd numbers and the inner ones even numbers. The actual numbers were known to the Australians from the markings on maps captured at Sidi Barrani and were also displayed on the posts themselves. The major tactical defect of this defensive system was that if the enemy broke through, the posts could be picked off individually from the front or rear. The defence was supported by a strong artillery component, yet the large number of gun models, many of them quite old, created difficulties with the supply of spare parts. The older guns often had worn barrels, which caused problems with accuracy. Ammunition stocks were similarly old and perhaps as many as two-thirds of the fuses were out of date, resulting in excessive numbers of dud rounds. Shortages of raw materials, coupled with the increased technological sophistication of modern weapons, led to production problems that frustrated efforts to supply the Italian Army with the best available equipment. As a "mobile reserve" there were thirteen M13/40 medium tanks and a hundred and fifteen L3/35 tankettes. The L3s were generally worthless, the M13/40s were effective medium tanks with four machine guns and a turret-mounted 47 mm antitank gun for its main armament that were "in many ways the equal of British armoured fighting vehicles". Bergonzoli knew that if Bardia and Tobruk held out, a British advance further into Libya eventually must falter under the logistical difficulties of maintaining a desert force using an extended overland supply line. Not knowing how long he had to hold out, Bergonzoli was forced to ration his stocks of food and water so that O'Connor could not simply starve him out. Hunger and thirst adversely affected the morale of the Italian defenders that had already been shaken by the defeat at Sidi Barrani.

On the Allied side, the 6th Australian Division had been formed in September 1939 as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force. Prime Minister Robert Menzies ordered that all commands in the division were to go to reservists rather than to regular officers, who had been publicly critical of the defence policies of right wing politicians. The result was that when war came, the Army's equipment was of World War I vintage and its factories were only capable of producing small arms. Fortunately, these World War I-era small arms, the Lee–Enfield rifle and the Vickers machine gun, were solid and reliable weapons that would remain in service throughout the war; they were augmented by the more recent Bren light machine gun. Most other equipment was obsolescent and would have to be replaced but new factories were required to produce the latest items, such as 3-inch mortars, 25-pounder field guns and motor vehicles; War Cabinet approval for their construction was slow in coming. The training of the 6th Australian Division in Palestine, while "vigorous and realistic", was therefore hampered by shortages of equipment. These shortages were gradually remedied by deliveries from British sources. Similarly, No. 3 Squadron RAAF had to be sent to the Middle East without aircraft or equipment and supplied by the Royal Air Force, at the expense of its own squadrons. Despite the rivalry between regular and reserve officers, the 6th Australian Division staff was an effective organisation. Brigadier John Harding, the chief of staff of XIII Corps, as the Western Desert Force was renamed on January 1st, 1941. Harding later considered the 6th Australian Division staff "as good as any that I came across in that war, and highly efficient." As it moved into position around Bardia in December 1940, the 6th Australian Division was still experiencing shortages. It had only two of its three artillery regiments and only the 2/1st Field Regiment was equipped with the new 25-pounders, which it had received only that month. Only A Squadron of the 2/6th Cavalry Regiment was on hand, as the rest of the regiment was deployed in the defence of the frontier posts at Al-Jaghbub and Siwa Oasis. The 2/1st Antitank Regiment had likewise been diverted, so each infantry brigade had formed an antitank company but only eleven 2-pounders were available instead of the 27 required. The infantry battalions were particularly short of mortars and ammunition for the Boys anti-tank rifle was in short supply.

To make up for this, O'Connor augmented Brigadier Edmund Herring's 6th Australian Division Artillery with part of the XIII Corps artillery: the 104th (Essex Yeomanry) Regiment, Royal Horse Artillery, equipped with sixteen 25 pounders. Italian gun positions were located using sound ranging by the 6th Survey Regiment, Royal Artillery. At a meeting with Mackay on Christmas Eve, 1940, O'Connor visited Mackay at divisional headquarters and directed him to prepare an attack on Bardia. O'Connor recommended that this be built around the 23 Matilda tanks of the 7th Royal Tank Regiment (Lieutenant Colonel R. M. Jerrram) that remained in working order. The attack was to be made with only two brigades, leaving the third for a subsequent advance on Tobruk. Mackay did not share O'Connor's optimism about the prospect of an easy victory and proceeded on the assumption that Bardia would be resolutely held, requiring a well-planned attack. The plan developed by Mackay and his chief of staff, Colonel Frank Berryman, involved an attack on the western side of the Bardia defences by 16th Australian Infantry Brigade (Brigadier Arthur "Tubby" Allen) at the junction of the Gerfah and Ponticelli sectors. Attacking at the junction of two sectors would confuse the defence. The defences here were weaker than in the Mereiga sector, the ground was favourable for employment of the Matilda tanks and good observation for the artillery was possible. Most of the artillery, grouped as the "Frew Group" under British Lieutenant Colonel J. H. Frowen, would support the 16th Australian Infantry Brigade; the 17th would be supported by the 2/2nd Field Regiment. Much depended on the Western Desert Force moving fuel, water and supplies forward. The 6th Australian Division Assistant Adjutant General and Quartermaster General (AA&QMG), Colonel George Alan Vasey said "This is a Q war".

A series of air raids were mounted against Bardia in December, in the hope of persuading the garrison to withdraw. Once it became clear that the Italians intended to stand and fight, bombing priorities shifted to the Italian airbases around Tobruk, Derna and Benina. Air raids on Bardia resumed in the lead-up to the ground assault, with 100 bombing sorties flown against Bardia between December 31st, 1940 and January 2nd, 1941, climaxing with a particularly heavy raid by Vickers Wellington bombers of No. 70 Squadron RAF and Bristol Bombay bombers of No. 216 Squadron RAF on the night of January 3rd, 1941. A naval bombardment was carried out on the morning of the 3rd by the Queen Elizabeth-class battleships HMS Warspite, Valiant and Barham and their destroyer escorts. The aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious provided aircraft for spotting and fighter cover. They withdrew after firing 244 15-inch (380 mm), 270 6-inch (150 mm) and 240 4.5-inch (110 mm) shells. The assault troops rose early on January 3rd, 1941. The leading companies began moving to the start line at 0416. The artillery opened fire at 0530. On crossing the start line the 2/1st Infantry Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Kenneth Eather, came under Italian mortar and artillery fire. The lead platoons advanced accompanied by sappers of the 2/1st Field Company carrying Bangalore torpedoes—12-foot (3.7 m) pipes packed with ammonal—as Italian artillery fire began to land, mainly behind them. An Italian shell exploded among a leading platoon and detonated a Bangalore torpedo, resulting in four killed and nine wounded. The torpedoes were slid under the barbed wire at 60-yard (55 m) intervals. A whistle was blown as a signal to detonate the torpedoes but could not be heard over the din of the barrage. Eather became anxious and ordered the engineering party nearest him to detonate their torpedo. This the other teams heard, and they followed suit. The infantry scrambled to their feet and rushed forward, they advanced on a series of posts held by the 2nd and 3rd Battalions of the Italian 115th Infantry Regiment. Posts 49 and 47 were rapidly overrun, as was Post 46 in the second line beyond. Within half an hour Post 48 had also fallen and another company had taken Posts 45 and 44. The two remaining companies now advanced beyond these positions towards a low stone wall as artillery fire began to fall along the broken wire.

The Italians fought from behind the wall until the Australians were inside it, attacking with hand grenades and bayonets. The two companies succeeded in taking 400 prisoners. The 2/2nd Infantry Battalion (Lieutenant Colonel F. O. Chilton) found that it was best to keep skirmishing forward throughout this advance, because going to ground for any length of time meant sitting in the middle of the enemy artillery concentrations that inflicted further casualties. The Australian troops made good progress, six tank crossings were readied and mines between them and the wire had been detected. Five minutes later, the 23 Matildas of the 7th Royal Tank Regiment advanced, accompanied by the 2/2nd Infantry Battalion. Passing through the gaps, they swung right along the double line of posts. The Italian defenders were cleared with grenades. By 0920 all companies were on their objectives and they had linked with 2/1st Infantry Battalion. However, several Bren gun carriers encountered problems as they moved forward during the initial attack. One was hit and destroyed in the advance and another along the Wadi Ghereidia. The 2/3rd Infantry Battalion was now assailed by half a dozen Italian M13/40 tanks who freed a group of 500 Italian prisoners. The tanks continued to rumble to the south while the British crews of the Matildas "enjoying a brew, dismissed reports of them as an Antipodean exaggeration". Finally, they were engaged by an antitank platoon of three 2 pounders mounted on portees. By midday, 6,000 Italian prisoners had already reached the provosts at the collection point near Post 45, escorted by increasingly fewer guards whom the rifle companies could afford to detach. The Italian perimeter had been breached and the attempt to halt the Australian assault at the outer defences had failed. Major H. Wrigley's 2/5th Infantry Battalion of Brigadier Stanley Savige's 17th Infantry Brigade, reinforced by two companies of Lieutenant Colonel T. G. Walker's 2/7th Infantry Battalion, now took over the advance. The battalion's task was to clear "The Triangle", a map feature created by the intersection of three tracks north of Post 16. Wrigley's force had a long and exhausting approach, and much of its movement forward to its jump off point had been under Italian shellfire intended for the 16th Infantry Brigade. Awaiting its turn to move, the force sought shelter in Wadi Scemmas and its tributaries. Wrigley called a final coordinating conference for 1030, but at 1020 he was wounded by a bullet and his second in command, Major G. E. Sell took over.

The artillery barrage came down at 1125, and five minutes later the advance began. The sun had now risen, and Captain C. H. Smith's D Company came under effective fire from machine guns and field artillery 700 yards (640 m) to the north east. Within minutes, all but one of the company's officers and all its senior non-commissioned officers had been killed or wounded. Meanwhile, Captain D. I. A. Green's B Company of the 2/7th Infantry Battalion had captured Posts 26, 27 and 24. After Post 24 had been taken, two Matildas arrived and helped to take Post 22. As the prisoners were rounded up, one shot Green dead, then threw down his rifle and climbed out of the pit smiling broadly. He was immediately thrown back and a Bren gun emptied into him. Upon hearing of the losses to the 2/5th Infantry Battalion, Brigade Major G. H. Brock sent Captain J. R. Savige's A Company of the 2/7th Infantry Battalion to take "The Triangle". Savige gathered his platoons and, with fire support from machine guns, attacked the objective, 3,000 yards (2,700 m) away. The company captured eight field guns, many machine-guns and nearly 200 prisoners on the way, but casualties and the need to detach soldiers as prisoner escorts left him with only 45 men at the end of the day. That evening, Brigadier Savige came forward to the 2/5th Infantry Battalion's position to determine the situation, which he accurately evaluated as "extremely confused; the attack was stagnant." Meanwhile, Captain G. H. Halliday's D Company moved southwards against Post 19. He drew the defenders' attention with a demonstration by one platoon in front of the post while the rest of the company moved around the post and attacked silently from the rear. This maneuver took the defenders by surprise and D Company captured the post—and 73 prisoners—at 0230. Although the Australian progress had been slower than that achieved during the break-in phase, the 17th Infantry Brigade had achieved remarkable results. Another ten posts, representing 3 kilometres (1.9 mi) of perimeter had been captured, the Switch Line had been breached, and thousands of Italian defenders had been captured. For the Italians, halting the Australian advance would be an immensely difficult task.

On the afternoon of January 3rd, Berryman met with Allen, Jerram and Frowen at Allen's headquarters at Post 40 to discuss plans for the next day. It was agreed that Allen would advance on Bardia and cut the fortress in two, supported by Frowen's guns, every available tank, MacArthur-Onslow's Bren gun carriers and the 2/8th Infantry Battalion, which Mackay had recently allocated from reserve. That evening, Berryman came to the conclusion that unless the Italian defence collapsed soon, the 16th and 17th Infantry Brigades would become incapable of further effort and Brigadier Horace Robertson's 19th Infantry Brigade would be required. The 2/1st Infantry Battalion began its advance on schedule at 0900, but the lead platoon came under heavy machine gun fire from Post 54, and Italian artillery knocked out the supporting mortars. The 3rd Regiment Royal Horse Artillery engaged the Italian guns and the platoon withdrew. The Italian guns were silenced when an Australian shell detonated a nearby ammunition dump. The Australians then captured the post. About a third of its defenders had been killed in the fighting. The remaining 66 surrendered. This prompted a general collapse of the Italian position in the north. Posts 56 and 61 surrendered without a fight and white flags were raised over Posts 58, 60, 63 and 65, and the gun positions near Post 58. By nightfall, Eather's men had advanced as far as Post 69 and only the fourteen northernmost posts still held out in the Gerfan sector. The advance resumed, only to come under machine gun and artillery fire from Wadi el Gerfan. The brigade major, Major I. R. Campbell, ordered MacArthur-Onslow, whose carriers were screening England's advance, to seize Hebs el Harram, the high ground overlooking the road to the township of Bardia. By the end of the second day, tens of thousands of defenders had been killed or captured. The remaining garrisons in the Gerfan and Ponticelli sectors were completely isolated. The logistical and administrative units were being overrun. Recognising that the situation was hopeless, General Bergonzoli and his staff had departed on foot for Tobruk during the afternoon, in a party of about 120 men.

On the morning of January 5th, the 19th Infantry Brigade launched its attack on the Meriega sector, starting from the Bardia road and following a creeping barrage southward with the support of six Matilda tanks, all that remained in working order. The others had been hit by shells, immobilised by mines, or had simply broken down. The company commanders of the lead battalion, the 2/11th Infantry Battalion, did not receive their final orders until 45 minutes before start time, at which point the start line was 3 miles (4.8 km) away. As they advanced, they came under fire from the left, the right, and in front of them, but casualties were light. Most positions surrendered when the infantry and tanks came close, but this did not reduce the fire from posts further away. Meanwhile, the Italian garrisons in the north were surrendering to the 16th Infantry Brigade and the Support Group of the 7th Armoured Division outside the fortress; the 2/8th Infantry Battalion had taken the area above Wadi Meriega; and the 2/7th Infantry Battalion had captured Posts 10, 12 and 15. The only post still holding out was now Post 11. The 2/6th Infantry Battalion renewed its attack, with the infantry attacking from the front and its carriers attacking from the rear. They were joined by Matildas from the vicinity of Post 6. At this point the Italian post commander, who had been wounded in the battle, lowered his flag and raised a white one. Some 350 Italian soldiers surrendered at Post 11. Godfrey sought out the Italian post commander—who wore a British Military Cross earned in the First World War—and shook his hand. "On a battlefield where Italian troops won little honour", Gavin Long later wrote, "the last to give in belonged to a garrison whose resolute fight would have done credit to any army."

The victory at Bardia enabled the Allied forces to continue their advance into Libya and capture almost all of Cyrenaica. As the first battle of the war to be commanded by an Australian general, planned by an Australian staff and fought by Australian troops, Bardia was of great interest to the Australian public; congratulatory messages poured in and AIF recruitment surged. In the United States, newspapers praised the 6th Division. An estimated 36,000 Italian soldiers were captured at Bardia, 1,703 (including 44 officers) were killed and 3,740 (including 138 officers) were wounded A few thousand (including General Bergonzoli and three of his division commanders) escaped to Tobruk on foot or in boats. The Allies captured 26 coastal defence guns, 7 medium guns, 216 field guns, 146 anti-tank guns, 12 medium tanks, 115 L3s, and 708 vehicles. Australian losses totalled 130 dead and 326 wounded. Bardia did not become an important port as supply by sea continued to run through Sollum but became an important source of water, after the repair of the large pumping station that the Italians had installed to serve the township and Fort Capuzzo. Axis forces reoccupied the town in April 1941, during Operation Sonnenblume, Rommel's first offensive in Cyrenaica. Bardia changed hands again in June 1942, being occupied by Axis forces for a third time and was re-taken for the last time in November unopposed, following the Allied victory at the Second Battle of El Alamein.

[ourforgottenwars-blog]

Korean War Tag List

Here is the tag list for the Korean War as it currently stands:

                                                 General Tags

Korean War

Cold War

                                                     Battles

Battle of Chosin Reservoir

Battle of the Imjin River

Battle Of Incheon

Battle of Old Baldy

Second Battle of Seoul

Second Battle of Naktong Bulge

Second Battle of the Hook

Fourth Battle of the Hook

Battle of Taejon

Battle of Miudong

Battle of Yultong

                                                   Locations

Chorwon

Daejeon

Hong Kong

Kimpo Air Base

Heartbreak Ridge

Hagaru-ri

Han River

Hyesan

Inje County

Iwakuni

Singapore

Seoul

Suncheon

Suwon 

Miryang

Osan Air Base

Pyongyang

Waegwan

Yalu River

                                                 United States

                                                         Army

US Army

8th Army

1st Cavalry Division

2nd Infantry Division

2nd Engineer Battalion

7th Cavalry Regiment

7th Infantry Division

17th Infantry Regiment

24th Infantry Division

25th Infantry Division

27th Infantry Regiment

40th Infantry Division

45th Infantry Division

51st Signal Battalion

65th Infantry Regiment

77th Engineer Combat Company

89th Medium Tank Battalion

196th Field Artillery Battalion

388th Engineer Pipeline Company

398th Anti-Aircraft Artillery AW Battalion

937th Field Artillery Battalion 

                                                      Marines

1st Marine Division

1st Provisional Marine Brigade

7th Marines

11th Marine Regiment

US Marines

                                                         Navy

US Navy

VMJ-1

VF-24

VF-51

VMF-212

USS Badoeng Strait

                                                      Air Force

US Air Force

3rd Bombardment Wing

17th Bombardment Group

51st Fighter Interceptor Wing

67th Tactical Reconnaissance Wing

452nd Bombardment Wing

731st Bombardment Squadron

                                                        Britain

                                                         Army

British Army

Royal Artillery

Royal Army Service Corps

royal engineers

5th Royal Inniskilling Dragoon Guards

7th Royal Tank Regiment

8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars

27th Infantry Brigade

29th Infantry Brigade

King's Own Scottish Borderers

King's Shropshire Light Infantry

The Gloucestershire Regiment

Essex Regiment

Middlesex Regiment

Royal Norfolk Regiment

Royal Leicestershire Regiment

Royal Ulster Rifles

Black Watch

Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders

Duke of Wellington's Regiment

                                                      Air Force

Royal Air Force

                                                         Navy

Royal Navy

800 Naval Air Squadron

802 Naval Air Squadron

                                                       Australia

                                                       Army

Australian Army

1RAR

2RAR

3RAR

                                                     Air Force

Royal Australian Air Force

No.77 Squadron

No.491 Squadron

                                                United Nations

United Nations

                                                    Philippines

PEFTOK

2nd Battalion Combat Team

10th Battalion Combat Team

14th Battalion Combat Team

19th Battalion Combat Team

20th Battalion Combat Team

                                                Commonwealth

1st Commonwealth Division

                                                      Colombia

Colombian Army

Colombian Navy

                                                        Canada

Canadian Army

Princess Patricia's Canadian Light Infantry

Lord Strathcona's Horse (Royal Canadians)

The Royal Canadian Regiment

Royal 22nd Regiment

25th Canadian Infantry Brigade

                                                       Ethiopia

Ethiopian Army

                                                         Turkey

turkish army

                                                         Greece

greek army

                                                  South Korea

1st Infantry Division

8th Infantry Division

South Korean Army

South Korean Marines

Korean Service Corps

                                                   North Korea

North Korean Army

                                                          China

People's Liberation Army

[ltwilliammowett]

This is an interpretation of an embarkation of cavalry from Perry's Brunswick Dock, Blackwall. The troops are thought to be on their way to Ostend, where they were ordered for foreign service and the event shown was previously said to be on 24 April 1793. The soldiers wear a uniform with red facings, and approximately 800 were embarked altogether, including the 11th and 15th Dragoons and Horse Guards. Their kit can be seen in the foreground. The transports were brought into the basin for the convenience of putting the horses on board and the painting shows them lined up, ready to be loaded. One horse is shown being hoisted aboard in a canvas sling. On the left people are peering to watch over the surrounding dock wall. 'The Times' for 25 April reported the embarkation of the 24th, which was attended by the Prince of Wales, Duke of York and Duke of Gloucester and a large assembly. The King and Queen were also supposed to go but other press reports show they were prevented by the 'indisposition' of one of the princesses. Perry had erected a special viewing platform for them and other 'persons of rank and fashion', and subsequent reports mention a 'canopy' and 'feasts' prepared for the King and Queen instead coming the following week for another embarkation - apparently of light dragoons - though this was in fact delayed to 8 May. By that time all mention of the King and Queen appearing had been dropped. A final embarkation of four troops of the 2nd (Queen's) Regiment of Dragoon Guards and two of the 7th (Queen's Own) Regiment of Light Dragoons took place early in the morning of 24 May, the former being commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Lord Herbert and the latter by Major Osborn (Lloyd's Evening Post, 22-24 May 1793). Give the lack of any sign of royal presence here, Anderson's view is - at best and subject to further investigation - likely to be the second or third of these embarkations, though typical enough of the operations involved.

by William Anderson 1793

[victoriansword]

Colonel Probyn and the Officers of the 11th Bengal Cavalry, 1863

This photo illustrates the great diversity in uniforms that could be found in any given cavalry regiment in Indian following the Mutiny in 1857-58. This diversity extends to the swords used by the officers and men. We can see the three-bar hilt of a Pattern 1821 Light Cavalry Sword, a “Hindu basket hilt” of a khanda or firangi, “mameluke” hilts, non-regulation “Scinde Horse” pattern hilts (scroll hilts), and hilts that are very similar to Pattern 1796 Cavalry Swords.

[hussar4]

Description: World War I Archive, included assorted documents, poster, certificates, and ephemera, 60 plus items total, pertaining to Judge James A. Newman, whose currency collection is featured in this auction, from the time of his service as First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army, 51st Infantry Regiment, 6th Infantry Division. 1st item: Letter in French with envelope from Mr. and Mme. Terriot of Recey-sur-Ource, Cote-d'Or, dated May 26, 1919, addressed to Monsieur James A. Newman/ 1st Lieutenant 51st Inf./American E. F. France/A. P. O. 777., with translation on Salvation Army stationary, presumably by Newman. The letter states how "greatly we regret not having you with us any longer...There are not many Americans in Recey by now. The company stationed close to us has left yesterday, and others follow it daily. May you all leave with the conviction that the French will always remember their friends (Americans) well and that they will never forget the eternal gratitude the French owe them". They request for Newman to "Please write us often. Your letters will be welcomed, for we will never forget you. Your absence is very noticeable in our house. Trusting that you will visit us, we are forwarding you our best sentiment, our excellent thoughts about you; and do deem us your devoted friends. A Terriot". 1 1/2" dried flower attached to letter, top left corner of first page. 2nd item: Letter in English with envelope from Malnouiy of Recey-sur-Ource, Cote-d'Or, dated December 6, 1946, addressed to M. James A. Newman/Attorney at Law/1210-11 Independent Building/Nashville/Tennessee/U.S.A. The letter begins "I write to say that Mr. Terriot is dead the last week, after a few days of illness. Worn by work, he went to bed for no use again; he kept his lucidity until he expire[d]. My mother remained near him to the last minute, since we were his best friends". Malnouiy writes that "In the France, for the time, we are in a critical situation. The revictualling is very bad and our directing - men think more politics; It's a pity after all things that we had seen during the Germans occupation! Perhaps a day, we will have a veritable chief who thinks French". 3rd item: Pre-World War I chromolithograph poster titled "Men Wanted For the Army" after a painting by Michael P. Whelan (American, 20th Century), published by American Lithography Company, New York, 1909. U.S. Army recruiting poster depicting an officer standing with a soldier, seated on a horse, blowing a bugle. "Apply at ---- Recruiting Station." lower center under image. Signed in the plate, lower right. Housed in a light blue painted wooden frame. Sight - 39 5/8" H x 28 1/2" W. Framed - 41 1/8" H x 30" W. 4th item: Thirty-one (31) page document titled "Selection and organization of Snipers", undated. The first paragraph reads "A good sniper must be a good shot. He must be more inteeligent [sic] than the average man to be used as an observer. As such he must remember what he has observed, and know how to report it. He mus[t] be a man with plenty of guts. Must posses patience. He does not get frequent shots, and must often wait considerable time. He must not fire unless he is pretty certain that he will scorea [sic] hit. He must be physically fit, much more so than the average soldier". Mathematical notations, back cover page. Pages bound by twine, top left and right. 5th-9th items: Six (6) copies, three (3) incomplete, thirteen (13) pages total, of "The Voyage", "a semi-Occasional news periodical published by the Fifty-First United States Infantry in the interest of Sport, Fun and Good-Fellowship, on the occasion of its trip across the Atlantic and on its mission to help make the world safe for Democrats". 10th item: One (1) page document detailing "Platoon Attack Formation" organized under "1st Attack Formation" and "2nd Attack Formation". 11th item: Three (3) page document containing an "Alphabetical List of Officers in Fifty-First Infantry" dated June 3, 1918. Pages stapled, top left corner. 12th item: One (1) U. S. S. Leviathan Abandon Ship card, dated June 5, 1919, for Capt. J. A. Newman, stating that "You are assigned to Life Boat No. 61 located C deck near main mast for the current trip. A. Stanton/Commander, U. S. Navy,/Executive Officer". 13th item: One (1) Sixth Division, U.S. Army Time Inspection Service certificate, No. 17031, dated June 10, 1918, stating "This is to certify that watch No 1082803 make Ham...has been inspected and is up to the standard required in this Division". signed by Griffith-Weaver, Inspector. 14th item: Twelve (12) page official copy of "Memorandums -- Hq. 51st. Inf. & Ft. Oglethorpe, Ga. Now in Force./Memo, Hq. Ft. Oglethorpe, GA. #1." dated June 30, 1917. Facsimile signature of S. F. Howard, cover page. Pages stapled, top left and right corners. 15th item: Two (2) page "Office of Supply Officer, Fifty First Infantry./Camp Forrest, Ga., 12th June, 1918./Memorandum:" from H. Robert W. Herwig, Captain & S. O., 51st Infantry. Pages stapled, top left corner. 16th item: Blank four (4) page "War Department./Quartermaster Corps./Officer's Pay Voucher.", Form No. 336. Front and back pages folded with two loose interior pages.17th item: One (1) page carbon copy of a letter with two (2) page War Department Circular No. 9, dated November 13, 1917 describing field glasses. The letter is a refusal of Newman's request for field glasses from Howard Elliot, Captain, Sig. R.C. A.S., Disbursing Officer, Chicamauga Park, GA, dated January 11, 1918. Letter and circular bound by paper clip, top center. 18th item: One (1) page document listing "Articles" of "Intrenching Tools" and Organization Equipment" in one column with a second column listing "Allowance" of each item. 19th-24th items: Six (6) pages of documents with envelope detailing Newman's loss of equipment will he was stationed in Recey-sur-Ource, Cote-d'Or with voucher for reimbursement for the sum of $174.66, dated February 4 - April 22, 1919. Three pages pinned, top left corner, two pages pinned, top center, one page, dated March 26, 1919, loose. 25th item: One (1) page carbon copy "Advertisement" reading "Come Join the Circus/Enlist in Headquarters Company/51st Infantry./Extraordinary Opportunities...[for] Men of the Following Trades/And Professions Are Required..." including "Pacifists/Trapeze Performers/Doughnut Hole Cutters/Lion Tamers/Beauty Specialists/Tooth Brush Makers" among other positions. 26th item: One (1) page receipt from the Atlantic Hotel, Boulevard Victor-Hugo, Nice, France. 27th-41st item: Fifteen (15) assorted military pins, medals, service ribbons, including one American Legion pin and one uniform button. 42nd item: One (1) faux black leather three-ring address book with photograph of an unidentified man and woman. Illegible pencil writing on front notebook pages, address section mostly blank. Book - 5 1/2" H x 3 1/2" W x 1/2" D. Photograph - 4 1/2" H x 2 7/8" W. 43rd item: One (1) black and white photo of an unidentified solider. Inscription reads "Not J A Newman", en verso. 11" H x 6 3/4" W. 44th item: One (1) miniature Brodie helmet stamped "American Legion Dept of Tenn Nashville" with laurel wreath and five pointed "US" star. 1 3/4" H x 5" W x 5 1/2" D. 45th item: One (1) blue felt with gold trim and writing reading "Welcome Legionnaire". 4" H x 11" W. 11" H x 6 3/4" W. 46th-49th items: Five (5) small flags, including four (4) United States of America flags and two (2) American Legion flags. Approximately 14" H. 50th item: One (1) card stock "disk", "prepared by Lt. James A. Newman Inf. R. C.". 5 1/8" dia. 51st item: One (1) tobacco advertising tin for the "Three Castles" cigarettes, W. D. and H. O. Wills, Bristol and London. 3 1/4" H x 2 3/4" dia. 52nd-56th item: Four (4) shoulder epaulets in one (1) brown canvas drawstring bag labeled "Newman". Bag - 6" H x 6" W. Epaulets - 5 1/2" L. 57th item: One (1) hardback copy of "No. 1923 - Description and Rules for the Management of the United States Rifle, Caliber .30, Model of 1903" published by the Government Printing Office, Washington, D.C., 1917. 9 1/4" H x 6 1/8" W. 58th-60th items: Three (3) black and white photographs, one taken by Fletcher Harvey Schumacher, a Nashville, Tennessee photographer, depicting a man, identified as Billye Newman, en verso of one photograph. Housed in a card stock folder with" Portrait by Fletcher Harvey Schumacher" embossed lower right corner of front cover. Photographs range in size from 7" H x 5 1/8" W to 15 1/8" H x 11" W. Folder - 15 3/8" H x 11 3/8" W. 61st item: One (1) cotton and lace baby bib. 9" L. Early/mid 20th century. Provenance: the collection of the late James A. Newman (Nashville, TN, 1892-1964). (Additional high-resolution photos as well as information about PMG and third-party grading, the Friedberg Numbering System and James A. Newman are available at www.caseantiques.com.)Condition Report: All tems in overall good condition with toning, tears, dampstaining, etc., to be expected from age. 3rd item: Sheet adhered to auxiliary support. Areas of loss to poster, largest 3 5/8", exposing auxiliary support. Scattered foxing spots, largest 3/8", surface of sheet. Scattered creases, wrinkles, largest 5", surface of sheet. Areas of dampstaining, largest 1 1/2", surface of sheet.

https://www.invaluable.com/auction-lot/-1-c-F074542ADB?utm_source=inv_kwalert&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=keywordalertlive&utm_term=2

[ww1revisited]

Etaples is a town about 27 kilometres south of Boulogne. Etaples Military Cemetery is to the north of the town, on the west side of the road to Boulogne.

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

During the First World War, the area around Etaples was the scene of immense concentrations of Commonwealth reinforcement camps and hospitals. It was remote from attack, except from aircraft, and accessible by railway from both the northern or the southern battlefields. In 1917, 100,000 troops were camped among the sand dunes and the hospitals, which included eleven general, one stationary, four Red Cross hospitals and a convalescent depot, could deal with 22,000 wounded or sick. In September 1919, ten months after the Armistice, three hospitals and the Q.M.A.A.C. convalescent depot remained.

Etaples: Jasper Myers Richardson

Etaples: Jasper Myers Richardson

Etaples: Lt-Col W.R.A. Dawson DSO

Etaples: Lt-Col W.R.A. Dawson DSO

Etaples: Lt-Col A.M. Holdsworth

Etaples: Lt-Col A.M. Holdsworth

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

Etaples Military Cemetery

The cemetery contains 10,769 Commonwealth burials of the First World War, the earliest dating from May 1915. Hospitals were again stationed at Etaples during the Second World War and the cemetery was used for burials from January 1940 until the evacuation at the end of May 1940. After the war, a number of graves were brought into the cemetery from other French burial grounds. Of the 119 Second World War burials, 38 are unidentified. Etaples Military Cemetery also contains 658 German burials and a few war graves of other nationalities. The cemetery, the largest Commission cemetery in France, was designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens.

Etaples Military Cemetery in the snow 1919

   Royal Field Artillery

584

  Royal Engineers

302

Royal Garrison Artillery

271

   Northumberland Fusiliers

258

Machine Gun Corps

244

  Royal Fusiliers (City Of London Regt)

243

Kings Liverpool Regt

203

  Gordon Highlanders

199

West Yorkshire Regt

188

  Royal Scots (Lothian Regt)

178

Seaforth Highlanders

163

  Middlesex Regt

156

Durham Light Inf

153

  Royal Army Medical Corps

142

 Kings Royal Rifle Corps

135

  Manchester Regt

135

Rifle Brigade

128

  Duke of Wellingtons (West Riding Regt)

127

South Staffordshire Regt

125

  Lincolnshire Regt

125

Army Service Corps

124

  Lancashire Fusiliers

117

Kings Own Yorkshire Light Infantry

116

  Sherwood Foresters (Notts & Derbys Regt)

112

York and Lancaster Regt

107

  Royal Welsh Fusiliers

103

Highland Light Infantry

101

  Queens (Royal West Surrey Regt)

97

Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders

96

  Black Watch (Royal Highlanders)

94

Border Regt

93

  East Yorkshire Regt

92

Yorkshire Regt (Green Howards)

91

  Essex Regt

90

Royal Warwickshire Regt

87

  Worcestershire Regt

85

Hampshire Regt

83

  Cheshire Regt

81

Suffolk Regt

81

  Loyal North Lancashire Regt

79

Royal Lancaster Regt

78

  Royal Berkshire Regt

71

Kings Shropshire Light Inf

71

  Grenadier Guards

70

Ox and Bucks Light Infantry

69

  Cameronians (Scottish Rifles)

68

South Lancashire Regt

66

  Bedfordshire Regt

64

Gloucestershire Regt

62

  Royal Sussex Regt

62

Cameron Highlanders

61

  Royal Army Service Corps

61

Kings Own Scottish Borderers

60

  Royal West Kent Regt (Queens Own)

60

Devonshire Regt

59

  East Lancashire Regt

59

Leicestershire Regt

55

  Somerset Light Infantry

53

Royal Scots Fusiliers

52

  19th Bn London Regt (St. Pancras)

51

1st Life Guards

51

  East Surrey Regt

49

Buffs (East Kent Regt)

48

  South Wales Borderers

48

Norfolk Regt

48

  North Staffordshire Regt

46

Welsh Regiment

41

  Royal Dublin Fusiliers

39

Duke of Cornwall’s Light Inf

38

  Coldstream Guards

38

Irish Guards

36

  Royal Naval Division, Royal Marines Light Inf

36

Honourable Artillery Coy

35

  Wiltshire Regt

35

Royal Air Force

34

  Dorsetshire Regt

33

Scots Guards

33

  Northamptonshire Regt

33

Royal Irish Rifles

30

  14th Bn London Regt (London Scottish)

27

Tank Corps

27

  9th Bn London Regt (Queen Victorias Rifles)

23

Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers

21

  1st Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

20

Royal Flying Corps

19

  12th Bn London Regt (The Rangers)

17

Leinster Regt

17

  Royal Irish Fusiliers

17

5th Bn London Regt (London Rifle Brigade)

16

  22nd Bn London Regt (The Queens)

16

Royal Horse Artillery

16

  Welsh Guards

15

Monmouthshire Regt

15

  Royal Irish Regt

15

16th Bn London Regt (Queens Westminster Rifles)

14

  8th Bn London Regt (Post Office Rifles)

14

Royal Naval Division, Anson Bn

14

  Royal Naval Division, Hood Bn

13

Army Veterinary Corps

13

  Labour Corps

13

21st Bn London Regt (1st Surrey Rifles)

13

  4th Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

12

15th Bn London Regt (PWO, Civil Service Rifles )

12

  18th Bn London Regt (London Irish Rifles)

12

Royal Munster Fusilier

12

  17th Bn London Regt (Poplar & Stepney Rifles)

11

Royal Naval Division, Howe

11

  1st Household Bn

11

Royal Guernsey Light Infantry

10

  28th Bn London Regt (Artists Rifles)

10

3rd Dragoon Guards (Prince of Wales’s)

10

  20th Bn London Regt (Blackheath & Woolwich)

10

 13th Bn London Regt (Kensington)

9

  Army Cyclist Corps

9

Royal Naval Division, Drake Bn

9

  Royal Army Ordanance Corps

8

3rd Bn London Regt ( Royal Fusiliers)

7

  23rd Bn London Reg

7

Royal Naval Division, Hawke Bn

7

  24th Bn London Regt (The Queens)

7

Cambridgeshire Regt

7

  Royal Naval Division, Nelson Bn

7

2nd Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

6

  Military Police Corps

6

 6th Bn London Regt (London Rifles)

5

  Hertfordshire Regt

5

11th Hussars (Prince Alberts Own)

5

  QMAAC

5

2nd Dragoon (Royal Scots Greys)

5

  7th Bn London Regt

4

5th Dragoon Guards (Princess Charlotte of Wales’s)

4

  9th Lancers (Queens Royal)

4

1st Dragoons (Royal)

4

  10th Hussars (Prince of Wales Own Royal)

4

Royal Army Veterinary Corps

4

  Guards Machine Gun Regt

4

Mercantile Marine, SS “Huntsmore”

4

  6th Dragoon Guards (Carabiniers)

3

Royal Horse Guards

3

  YMCA

3

 3rd Hussars (Kings Own)

3

  4th Hussars (Queens Own)

3

2/3rd Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

3

  2nd Dragoon Guards (Queens Bays)

3

2/2nd Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

3

  Queens A Imperial Military Nursing Service

3

Civilian

3

  Non Combattants Corps

3

Royal Naval Division, Medical Unit

3

  Connaught Rangers

3

12th Lancers (Prince of Wales’s Royal )

3

  2/5th Bn London Regt (London Rifle Brigade)

2

10th Bn London Regt (Hackney)

2

  Royal Naval Division, Machine Gun Coy

2

Royal Naval Division, Royal Marine Artillery

2

  2/7th Bn London Regt

2

2/12th Bn London Regt (The Rangers)

2

  Northamptonshire Yeomanry

2

2/4th Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

2

  20th Hussars

2

19th Hussars (Queen Alexandra’s Own Royal )

2

  2/6th Bn London Regt (London Rifles)

2

Voluntary Aid Detachments

2

  Queens Own Oxfordshire Hussars

2

6th Dragoons (Inniskilling)

2

  2nd Life Guards

2

14th Hussars (Kings)

1

Royal Navy HMS Victory

1

Lincolnshire Yeomanry

1

  Royal Navy HMS President VI

1

1st Dragoon Guards (Kings Royal)

1

  18th Hussars (Queen Mary’s Own)

1

Royal Navy HMS Eden

1

  17th Lancers (Duke of Cambridge’s Own)

1

7th Hussars (Queens Own)

1

  Lena Ashwell Concert Party

1

City of London Yeomanry (Rough Riders)

1

  Chinese Labour Corps

1

North Somerset Yeomanry

1

  Army Pay Corps

1

13th Hussars `

1

  Royal Hussars (Gloucestershire)

1

Warwickshire Yeomanry

1

  Royal Naval Division, Divisional Train

1

11th Bn London Regt (Finsbury Rifles)

1

  1/1st Staffordshire Yeomanry

1

Belgian Motorcyclist

1

  North Irish Horse

1

1/1st Huntingdonshire Cyclist Bn

1

  2nd Household Bn

1

Special List

1

  30th Bn London Regt

1

King Edwards Horse

1

  29th Bn London Regt

1

34th Bn London Regt

1

  Scottish Churches

1

23rd Lancers

1

  Infantry Base Depot

1

Leicestershire Yeomanry

1

  Chaplain to the Forces

1

1st King Edwards Horse

1

  1/1st East Riding Yeomanry

1

2/14th Bn London Regt (London Scottish)

1

  4th Dragoon Guards (Royal Irish)

1

General List

1

  St John’s Ambulance Brigade

1

5th Lancers (Royal Irish)

1

  2/2nd Lovat Scouts

1

Territorial Nursing Service

1

  2/24th Bn London Regt (The Queens)

1

2/20th Bn London Regt (Blackheath & Woolwich)

1

  2/1st Sussex Yeomanry

1

2/1st Bn London Regt (Royal Fusiliers)

1

  3rd County of London (Sharpshooters)

1

Identified UK Burials

8752

      Unidentified UK Burials

33 

      Total UK Burials

8785 

      Total Number of UK & Overseas Burials

10744

Silent Cities - WW1 Revisited website: Etaples Military Cemetery #WW1 Etaples is a town about 27 kilometres south of Boulogne. Etaples Military Cemetery is to the north of the town, on the west side of the road to Boulogne.

[1staif]

Reflections on the many changes of command

Private Diary and Journal of a Light Horseman Sgt William Peterson
 2nd Australian Light Horse Regiment
 EL-ARISH, SINAI PENINSULAR 11th JANUARY 1917 Horses and men having a well earned rest today. Captain Franklin who left us on Gallipoli sick and went to England has just arrived back and he is taking over the duties of Adjutant Vice Lieut J Warson. Captain Franklin makes our 6th Adjutant since the regiment was formed in 1914. Captain Goucher was the first. He was promoted Major then Captain H.J. Tiddy who went away sick and eventually got back to Australia – and stopped there! – Then Captain Alan B Steele who went away with Colonel [Brigadier] Glasgow with the 13th Infantry Brigade to France. Then Lieut A.R. Norris who transferred to the Egyptian Camel Corps in Cairo .Then Lieut John Wasson who goes back to his original troops in 13 Squadron and now Captain Franklin. We have had four different Commanding Officers 1st - Lieut Colonel R.M. Stodart 2nd - Lieut Col T.W. Glasgow 3rd - Lieut Colonel S.W. Barlow 4th - Lieut Colonel G.H. Bourne D.S.O. [D.S.O. won at Romani]

[wildyoungboy]

[July 20 1919] Pictures of some of the Aboriginal serviceman of the 11th Australian Light Horse Regiment who returned to Australia on the Troopship HMT Morvada

[18thfoot]

Michael Clarke was born on 4th March 1818 in Bohola, Castlebar, Co.Mayo and enlisted in the 8th Hussars in London on 2nd January 1836. He was promoted Sergeant in 1849 and Troop Sergeant-Major in March 1854. He went with his regiment to the Crimea in September 1854 where fought in the battles of the Alma and Balaclava, taking part in the Charge of the Light Brigade. Clarke served as Troop Sergeant Major of Captain Tomkinson’s Troop during the Charge. Of the 115 Officers and men of the 8th Hussars, 21 were killed and 20 wounded. The official casualty list, published in the London Gazette of 17th November 1854, records that Clarke was slightly wounded at Balaklava on 25th October 1854. He remained in the Crimea until May 1856 and was then posted with his regiment to Ireland. Clarke was gazetted Cornet, without purchase, on 16th October 1857. Around the time of his commission the 8th Hussars sailed for India, landing at Bombay in December 1857. Clarke served in India during the suppression of the Mutiny until 12h May 1862 after which he was stationed in the UK. He took part in the Battles of Kotah on 30th March 1858, Pupuldah, 8th April 1858, Rajpootanah, 15th December 1858, and the Pursuit of Rebels 15th December 1858 to 30th April 1859. Clarke was appointed Adjutant on 24th November 1858. He was promoted Lieutenant (by purchase) on 11th May 1860. Back in the UK, a broken leg from a kick by a horse ended his cavalry career and he transferred as a Lieutenant to the 59th Foot on 15th March 1867. He was Adjutant, District Recruiting Staff, in Liverpool from 22nd April 1868 until 1st April 1870. He was promoted Captain on 1st April 1869 and was Acting District Paymaster at Inverness from 1st April 1870 until 30th September 1873. On 13th June 1874 Captain Clarke was appointed Paymaster, 2nd Battalion, 18th Foot He died while still serving, in Dublin, on 27th December 1878 and is buried in Grangegorman Military Cemetery, Dublin. https://www.instagram.com/p/CmrGN-2NKh8/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[victoriansword]

British Pattern 1845 Infantry Officer’s Sword, c.1890

A lovely late-Victorian infantry officer's sword by Wilkinson identified to a high-ranking officer holding the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) and wounded in Gallipoli (WW1). This was the sword of Lieutenant-Colonel Edward Charles Philippi Bridges, who was born in April 1870 and was commissioned into the South Staffordshire Regiment in May 1890. This is the sword he purchased at that time. It is likely that at a later date he replaced this sword with one of the new pattern swords (1897 pattern) and that would explain the excellent condition of this one. Bridges, having been promoted to Captain, then served as an Adjutant in the Indian Volunteers [Nagpur Volunteer Rifles] from 1902-04 and was placed on the Reserve of Officers in December 1905. However, with the dawn of WW1 many officers who had retired from regular Army life returned to the service and Bridges was one of these.

Major E. C. P. Bridges, D.S.O. (South Staffordshire Regiment) commanded "C" Company. He was appointed Brigade M.G. Officer in March 1915. He took over command of battalion on 11/08/15 and was wounded while fighting at Gallipoli on 21/08/1915, being awarded the DSO for his actions. SouthStaffordshire Regiment officers in 1917/18:

Of his subsequent part in the Great War, the following statement of services was submitted by Bridges himself to the War Office in December 1920: "In the Spring of 1914, being then a Captain on the Reserve of Officers, and hearing from my brother Lieutenant-Colonel T. Bridges, D.S.O., then Military Attache in Brussels, of the extreme probability of an immediate war with Germany, I at once sold my farm in Matthew County, Virginia, U.S.A., and returned to England. I reported myself to the War Office and was informed if wanted I should be notified. About 6 August 1914, I was instructed to report myself at the depot of my old regiment at Lichefield, and against the advice of my medical adviser, I at once did so. In February 1915, I was appointed Brigade Machine-Gun Officer to the 33rd Brigade. In this appointment I served continuously at Cape Helles, attached to the Royal Naval Division, and, after the Brigade returned to the 11th Division, at the Suvla landing. On 10 August 1915, I was appointed to the command of the Regiment [7/South Staffordshires], vice Lieutenant-Colonel A. H. Daukes, killed in action on the 9th. I remained in command of until severely wounded in an attack on 21 August. I was evacuated to England and was admitted to the Royal Free Hospital, London, until March 1916, after which I was attached to various Staffs and to assist in training work." Only two officers from the 7th South Staffordshires emerged unscathed from the attack at Lala Baba in the afternoon of 21 August, the serious nature of Bridges’ wounds being summarised in the following report: "At Suvla Bay on 21 August 1915, he [Bridges] was wounded by a rifle bullet in the right arm ... At 2 a.m. on 22 August aboard a hospital ship, under anaesthetic, a tube was put in the wound. He was transferred straight to England, arriving on 9 September 1915, and was in the Royal Free Hospital ... during which time he had an anaesthetic for the evacuation of pus ... the limb is flexed at a right angle on a splint and there is great muscular wasting on both upper and forearm." Bridges was mentioned in General Sir Ian Hamilton’s despatch dated 11 December 1915 (London Gazette, 28 January 1916 refers), and was awarded the D.S.O. In May 1917, while serving as Commandant of the 5th Army School of Musketry at Warloy, Bridges was badly concussed when his horse bolted into some barbed wire entanglements - he was unable to pull the horse up on account of his disabled arm - and was admitted to hospital back in England. However, following a short spell of light duty on being discharged, he was found to be unfit for further military service in February 1918, "owing to wounds and disabilities contracted on service", and was placed on the Reserve of Officers as a Lieutenant-Colonel in the same month. This sword is probably not the one he took to the Great War, but it is certainly his first sword when he was a newly commissioned officer in 1890. It is a wonderful example of the type and shows the latest development of the 1845 pattern infantry officer's sword, before the blade design was revised in 1892 and the hilt in 1895. It features the straighter blade and hilt of these later examples and is in fantastic condition. The craftsmanship is Wilkinson's finest and the blade remains bright and with deep etching, solid in the hilt. The blade features Bridges' initials, family crest and motto, leaving no doubt as to the original owner. The brass guard and backstrap are in very good condition and the shagreen and gilt grip wire are near to perfect.

[ww1revisited]

St. Sever Cemetery, Rouen, is situated about 3 kilometres south of Rouen Cathedral and a short distance west of the road from Rouen to Elbeuf. Coming from Elbeuf/Caen on the N.138 follow Avenue Des Canadiens right down to the roundabout. Take the fourth exit into Boulevard Stanislas Girardin, and the cemetery lies 150 metres on the left. If coming from station Rive Gauche, Gare St Sever, follow Quai D’Elbeuf, Quai Jean Moulin, Quai Cavelier De La Salle into Avenue Jan Rondeaux, Av. De La Liberation, Bd. Du 11 Novembre to the roundabout. Take the first exit into Boulevard Stanislas Girardin, and the cemetery lies 150 metres on the left. St. Sever is part of Le Petit Quevilly. The first CWGC signpost is just when you get to the entrance of the cemetery.

St Sever Cemetery, Rouen

St Sever Cemetery, Rouen

St Sever Cemetery, Rouen

St Sever Cemetery, Rouen

During the First World War, Commonwealth camps and hospitals were stationed on the southern outskirts of Rouen. A base supply depot and the 3rd Echelon of General Headquarters were also established in the city. Almost all of the hospitals at Rouen remained there for practically the whole of the war. They included eight general, five stationary, one British Red Cross, one labour hospital, and No. 2 Convalescent Depot. A number of the dead from these hospitals were buried in other cemeteries, but the great majority were taken to the city cemetery of St. Sever. In September 1916, it was found necessary to begin an extension. St. Sever Cemetery contains 3,083 Commonwealth burials of the First World War.

St Sever: Brig-Gen F.J. De Gex

St Sever: Brig-Gen F.J. De Gex

St Sever: Dame Lucy Branfoot

St Sever: Edith Pearton YMCA

St Sever: Louisa Riggall

St Sever: F.B. Leighton

The Commonwealth plots were designed by Sir Reginald Blomfield.

Number of burials by Unit

Canadian Forces 131   Royal Field Artillery 128 Australian Forces 112   Northumberland Fusiliers 79 Indian Forces 76   Royal Fusiliers (City of London Regt.) 76 King’s Royal Rifle Corps 70   Manchester Regt. 67 Army Service Corps 65   King’s Liverpool Regt. 65 Royal Engineers 61   Middlesex Regt. 58 King’s Own Yorkshire Light Inf. 55   Durham Light Inf. 53 New Zealand Forces 51   Gordon Highlanders 48 West Yorkshire Regt. 47   Black Watch (Royal Highlanders) 46 Rifle Brigade 46   Leicestershire Regt. 45 Royal Warwickshire Regt. 42   Welsh Regiment 40 Gloucestershire Regt. 38   Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders 37 Cheshire Regt. 37   Royal Scots (Lothian Regt.) 37 Bedfordshire Regt. 34   Border Regt. 33 Highland Light Inf. 33   Seaforth Highlanders 32 Northamptonshire Regt. 31   Devonshire Regt. 30 East Surrey Regt. 30   East Yorkshire Regt. 30 Royal Garrison Artillery 30   Suffolk Regt. 30 King’s Own Scottish Borderers 29   Royal Berkshire Regt. 29 Royal Welsh Fusiliers 29   Lincolnshire Regt. 27 Royal Army Medical Corps 27   Machine Gun Corps (Inf.) 26 Royal West Kent (Queen’s Own) 26   South Lancashire Regt. 26 Cameron Highlanders 25   Grenadier Guards 25 Lancashire Fusiliers 25   Worcestershire Regt. 25 Yorkshire Regt. (The Green Howards) 25   Buffs (East Kent Regt.) 24 Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) 24   Loyal North Lancashire Regt. 24 Norfolk Regt. 24   Duke of Wellington’s (West Riding Regt.) 23 Essex Regt. 23   Ox. & Bucks. Light Inf. 23 Sherwood Foresters (Notts. & Derbys. Regt.) 23   Queen’s (Royal West Surrey Regt.) 22 Royal Irish Rifles 22   Somerset Light Inf. 21 South Staffordshire Regt. 21   Coldstream Guards 19 King’s Own Royal Lancaster Regt. 19   South African Forces 19 King’s Shropshire Light Inf. 18   Duke of Cornwall’s Light Inf. 17 Royal Irish Fusiliers 17   Royal Sussex Regt. 17 Royal Dublin Fusiliers 16   York & Lancaster Regt. 15 Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers 14   Royal Scots Fusiliers 14 East Lancashire Regt. 13   South Wales Borderers 13 19th Bn. London Regt. (St. Pancras) 12   Hampshire Regt. 12 Royal Munster Fusiliers 11   Irish Guards 11 Leinster Regt. 11   Royal Flying Corps/Royal Air Force 10 Royal Irish Regiment 10   14th Bn. London Regt. (London Scottish) 9 17th Bn. London Regt. (Poplar & Stepney Rifles) 9   23rd Bn. London Regt. 9 Connaught Rangers 9   Royal Horse Artillery 8 Scots Guards 8   12th Bn. London Regt. (The Rangers) 7 9th Bn. London Regt. (Queen Victoria’s Rifles) 7   Dorsetshire Regt. 7 North Staffordshire Regt. 7   Wiltshire Regt. 7 15th Bn. London Regt. (PWO Civil Service Rifles) 6   16th Bn. London Regt. (Queen’s Westminster Rifles) 6 21st Bn. London Regt. (First Surrey Rifles) 6   6th Bn. London Regt. (City of London Rifles) 6 7th Bn. London Regt. 6   8th Bn. London Regt. (Post Office Rifles) 6 20th Bn. London Regt. (Blackheath & Woolwich) 5   24th Bn. London Regt. (The Queen’s) 5 2nd Bn. London Regt. (Royal Fusiliers) 5   5th Bn. London Regt. (London Rifle Brigade) 5 Army Veterinary Corps 5   Monmouthshire Regt. 5 Royal Army Ordnance Corps 5   Royal Newfoundland Regt. 5 28th Bn. London Regt. (Artists’ Rifles) 4   Hertfordshire Regt. 4 13th Bn. London Regt. (Kensington) 3   18th Bn. London Regt. (London Irish Rifles) 3 2/10th Bn. London Regt. (Hackney) 3   4th Bn. London Regt. (Royal Fusiliers) 3 Labour Corps 3   Royal Naval Division 3 Welsh Guards 3   15th (The King’s) Hussars 2 1st Bn. London Regt. (Royal Fusiliers) 2   1st Life Guards 2 2nd (Queen’s Bays) Dragoon Guards 2   3rd (Prince of Wales’) Dragoon Guards 2 6th (Carabiniers) Dragoon Guards 2   Cambridgeshire Regt. 2 Chaplain to the Forces 2   North Somerset Yeom. 2 Royal Marine Light Inf. (Royal Naval Division) 2   Royal Wiltshire Yeom. 2 Voluntary Aid Detachment 2   10th (POW Royal) Hussars 1 11th (Prince Albert’s Own) Hussars 1   16th (The Queen’s) Lancers 1 17th (Duke of Cambridge’s Own) Lancers 1   19th (Queen Alexandra’s Own Royal) Hussars 1 1st (Royal) Dragoons 1   2/21st Bn. London Regt. (First Surrey Rifles) 1 2/4th Bn. London Regt. (Royal Fusiliers) 1   22nd Bn. London Regt. (The Queen’s) 1 2nd Life Guards 1   3rd (King’s Own) Hussars 1 3rd Bn. London Regt. (Royal Fusiliers) 1   4th (Queen’s Own) Hussars 1 4th (Royal Irish) Dragoon Guards 1   5th (Royal Irish) Lancers 1 8th (King’s Royal Irish) Hussars 1   Army Cyclist Corps 1 Army Pay Dept. 1   British Red Cross Society 1 Church Army 1   Civilian 1 French Army 1   Herefordshire Regt. 1 Household Bn. 1   Lord Strathcona’s Horse (Canada) 1 Machine Gun Corps (Cavalry) 1   Mercantile Marine 1 Military Police Corps 1   Queen’s Own Oxfordshire Hussars 1 Royal Army Service Corps 1   Royal Horse Guards 1 South Irish Horse 1   Special List 1 Sussex Yeom. 1   Tank Corps 1 West Kent Yeom. (Queen’s Own) 1   YMCA 1 Identified Burials 3083       Unidentified Burials 2       Total Burials 3085      

Silent Cities - WW1 Revisited website: St Sever Cemetery, Rouen #WW1 St. Sever Cemetery, Rouen, is situated about 3 kilometres south of Rouen Cathedral and a short distance west of the road from Rouen to Elbeuf.