11th (City of London Yeomanry) LAA RA in North Africa & Italy

Discussion in 'Royal Artillery' started by Adam_, Jun 18, 2015.

  1. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    Morning all,

    I've been directed here by people on the ww2f.com as they said theres some RA experts here:) I began researching my grandads WW2 history. I recived his service file and it has confirmed that he was in the 11th LAA Regiment, RA. Was wondering if anyone has any info on this regiment? He was posted to Africa and disembarked on the 14 November 1942 with the 11th LAA RA. He also went up through Italy and mentioned landing in Siciliy at one point. Before i go ahead and look up that regiments war diaries at Kew and/or order digital copies i was wondering if anyone has any info on the 11th LAA or has come across them in research they've been doing? Just trying to find out where they went and what if any actions they may of been involved in

    any help/info would be greatly appriciated:)

    thanks
    Adam
     

    Attached Files:

  2. 4jonboy

    4jonboy Daughter of a 56 Recce

    Pleased you made it here Adam, welcome :)

    Thread here from ww2f
    http://www.ww2f.com/topic/55600-11th-city-of-london-yeomanry-light-anti-aircraft-regiment/#entry620663

    I have tried to help Adam but as I am no RA expert, come on you lot can you help please :wink:

    His father's unit was 11th LAA Regiment, Royal Artillery through North Africa and Italy. Andy is looking into the war diaries for him too.

    Lesley

    Edited: Adam, can you post the other pages up please you posted on ww2f? Easier for members to see them here.

    Note to members: just for clarification, his father was in Italy too (not 3 years and 253 days as per his record in North Africa from 31.10.42 to 10.7.46!) , as he received the Italy Star.
     
  3. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    Thanks Lesley! and thank you for the heads up about this forum. Yep will post his full service record so people can have a browse:)
     
  4. Lotus7

    Lotus7 Well-Known Member

    Hi Adam, welcome to the forum, good luck with your research.
    Hang in there someone will be along to help you.
     
  5. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    I have attached his service file to this post, feel free to browse
     

    Attached Files:

  6. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    thanks Lotus7, Yeah i hope theres someone here who can shed some light on the 11th LAA :)
     
  7. Lotus7

    Lotus7 Well-Known Member

    sorry I should have looked and read Lesley's post derr


    David
     
  8. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    Its ok, yeah i had read that thread before..a chap called Steve811 made a couple of remarks about the 11th LAA, see below:



    'The 11th was the City of London Yeomanry (Rough Riders) my father was in 33 battery he was a tow driver in left troop, they had 40mm bofors guns until air superiority in Italy then they were changed to heavy mortars.'


    'As per my previous post 11th was the City of London Yeomanry, I asked my father the set up of the unit, he said that the 11th was a TA unit and that 31,32 and 33 were each split into 2 troops left and right and each troop had 6 guns. they were deployed to North Africa late 1942 from there they went to Italy. At one point they supplied AA cover for a US airbase in North Africa.
    He also said that 43 was the airbourne side of the Regiment and were never with the them'.
     
  9. Buteman

    Buteman 336/102 LAA Regiment (7 Lincolns), RA

    LAA Regiments had 3 troops per battery (6 guns per troop) until August 1944, then were reduced to 2 Troops per battery (6 guns per troop). This was due to a shortage of Infantry and was possible to achieve as the Allies had increasing air superiority.

    Heavy AA Regiments had a left and right troop per battery. I've never heard of an Light AA Regiment adopting this methodology.
     
  10. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    I know almost nothing about troops/batteries/divisions/groups etc total newbie to all this! Thanks for clarifying that ramacal.

    Also ive found another post by Rob Dickers which mentions the 11th LAA Rgt, see below:

    1st ARMY

    5th CORPS

    Royal Artillery

    23rd ,75th, 102nd ,140th 166th, 183rd Field Regiments
    4th ,5th 58th 74th Medium Regiments
    5th ,8th Survey Regiments
    87th 93rd Anti-Tank Regiment
    54th, 56th Heavy Regiments
    58th ,80th Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiments
    11th ,17th 45th 105th ,117th Light Anti-Aircraft Regiments
     
  11. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    also found this on www.ra39-45.com



    Apr 39 - Formed from 1 bty 11 RHA
    Sep 39 - London District
    Oct 39 - 49 AA Bde
    Nov 42 - 1 Army (North Africa)
    Jul 43 - Middle East Forces (North Africa)
    Sep 43 - 8 Army (Italy)
    Oct 44 - 2 AA Bde (Italy)



    Batteries Sep 39 -
    31, 32, 33, 43
     
  12. dryan67

    dryan67 Senior Member

    Here is a brief summary:

    11th (City of London Yeomanry) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, R.A. (T.A.)
    HQ, 31st-33rd, 43rd Btys: Bunhill Road, London E.C. 1

    The regiment formed part of 56th Anti-Aircraft Brigade at the outbreak of war. 43rd Battery left on 15 February 1940 to 101st Light AA/Anti-Tank Regiment, R.A. In February 1941, it was still located in London under 49th AA Brigade. 283rd Battery served under command from 9 June to 12 September 1941. It then rejoined around July 1942 and left on 4 December 1942 as No. 1 Airlanding Light AA Battery, R.A. (City of London Yeomanry) T.A.
    It arrived in North Africa by mid-January 1943 and came under command of V Corps. By mid-March 1943, it still had two batteries under V Corps with one battery under 22nd AA Brigade. It was completely under command of the brigade in May 1943 located at the Tunisian airfields. The regiment landed as the Corps Light AA Regiment of V Corps in Taranto in September 1943. It remained under the corps until April 1944, when it joined 2nd AA Brigade. It served under this brigade until the end of the campaign except for a detachment to 1st Infantry Division from 19 November 1944 until 17 January 1945.
     
    4jonboy likes this.
  13. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Hi Adam - for your ref here's the war diary details from 1942 to the end of the war

    WO 166/7624 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiments 1942 Jan-Sep
    WO 175/419 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment 1942 Nov-1943 Jun
    WO 169/9964 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment 1943 Jul-Dec
    WO 170/1212 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiments 1944 Jan-Dec
    WO 170/4875 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiments 1945 Jan-Dec
    WO 170/7954 11 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment 1946 Jan-Jun

    Cheers
    Andy
     
  14. Steve 811

    Steve 811 New Member

    Hi Adam

    Do you know which battery your grandfather was in, I couldn't see it from his service record.

    There is an old book on the City of London Yeomanry I don't know all the details, I'll see my father at the weekend and have a look at his copy, I think it was written by one of the officers.

    Cheers
    Steve
     
  15. hutt

    hutt Member

    Steve. I think there is a copy of this booklet in the IWM library. Unfortunately they don't let you copy things like at Kew.
     
  16. hutt

    hutt Member

    Adam

    My fathers RASC unit was formed to support the 11th LAA Regiment and shadowed them from June 42 and again in North Africa under the 22nd AA Brigade. I have a good number of diaries for the Brigade and RASC unit but only one for the 11th LAA Regiment itself. Obviously the actual regimental diaries are what you want but the 22nd AA Brigade diaries give a good overall picture of what was happening and for some periods list Regiment and Battery locations.

    They took part in Operation Dryshod in Scotland in September 42.

    See DSC04312.jpg recording part of their time in Scotland. This page was also (in the absence of the RASC diary) the crucial evidence for my father being in the Dundee area as the 11th LAA Regimental Diary actually records their RASC support unit as joining them of the 22nd July!

    Also, lots of entries in the diary of the 49th AA Brigade (DSC04748.jpg below)

    Drews your man for copying the regimental diaries in full.
     

    Attached Files:

  17. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    Dryan67 - Thank you for that brief overview of the 11th LAA. Im starting to get more of a picture of where abouts my grandads rgt went now..Tunisia/ Taranto etc

    Andy - Thank you again for the Ref No.'s of the 11th LAA Rgt diaries:) I'll PM you regarding copying

    Steve - No i dont know what battery he was in, thats partly what im trying to work out, but i guess will need the war diaries for that? Steve that would be brilliant if you could have a look at that book you mentioned, it may give some extra details about the 11th LAA. I was only at the IWM a month or so ago, could of had a search for the book then:-(

    Hutt - Thank you so much, that is some great info, so interesting. So am i right in thinking that the 22nd AA Brigade kinda shadowed the 11th LAA rgt? And was the 11th LAA under the command of the 49 AA Brigade? I get so confused with the Rgt//brigade/unit/battalion etc.

    I think my next move is to get copies of the war diaries:)
     
  18. hutt

    hutt Member

    Hi Adam



    I am afraid I am no expert, more an accumulator of diaries. From what I have read so far I have some idea of the Division, Brigade, Regiment and Battery structure certainly for the 1st AA Division in London during the Blitz but I would hesitate to commit anything down here as I could easily end up misleading you and others. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable can answer your question here. I would be very keen to see a more expert view as well particularly on which level was responsible for what and how instructions moved about the various layers.


    In advance of you obtaining the Regiment diaries, here are a couple of entries referring to the 11th LAA in my fathers RASC unit diaries and that of the 22nd AA Brigade Company


    26/02/1941

    (WO166-4895) ROYAL ARMY SERVICE CORPS COMPANIES 902 Anti-Aircraft Company

    24 vehicles on detail. 48/42 LAA Bty moved to Slough area. 31/11 LAA Bty moved out of Division. 11.00 White City w/s inspected by A.D.S.T Col Slaughter. 15.30 CRASC called and discussed Coy reorganisation. We agreed on general scheme but it requires more looking into. 19.30 Inter Coy boxing at White City V 900 Coy to decide on the team for the competition. We won 4 - 2. The fighting was of very good quality and we may get one or two through to the finish.


    11/02/1943

    (WO175-372) 22 A.A Bde Coy, R.A.S.C. (465 Coy)

    Ben Bachir

    18.00 Dvr Jeffries and 15 cwt truck which had sailed on KM/1 returned to this unit. Since landing in the Theatre the vehicle had been attached to 11 LAA Regt RA and has been used at Medjes El Bab & Testour for the collection of casualties.


    04/02/1943

    (WO175-986) 1532 Platoon RASC 11th LAA Regt

    Souk El Arba

    Broke Bulk and delivery of rations to: 11 LAA Regt RASC Pln; Rear HQ 11 LAA Regt RA; 17 LAA Regt RASC Pln; RHQ 58 Regt HAA Regt RA; 208 HAA Bty RA; HQ 22 AA Bde; 22 AA Bde Coy RASC; 347 LAA Bty RA


    I am also attaching the page of the 11th LAA diary covering the day your Grandfather joined. This is taken from WO166-7624. I would be happy to let you have a copy of whole of this diary and by way of mitigation to Andy (Drew5233) I would be happy to pay for a copy of the next diary covering the early part of their time in North Africa.



    Graham
     

    Attached Files:

  19. Adam_

    Adam_ Member

    Hi Graham

    Thank you very much for those snap shot diary entries that mention the 11th LAA, fasinating reading. Has started to give me an idea of where the 11th LAA were - Souk El Arba, Medjes El Bab, Testour etc. Im gona have to do much more reading on the Tunisia campaign! So would they of been under the command of the British 1st Army or the 8th? Also would they of come ashore in Algeria then headed east towards and into Tunisia?

    I already gave Andy the green light to copy the 11th LAA war diaries, will let you know when ive received them:)

    Also need to do more research on LAA regiments in general and what they were predominatly used for
     
  20. hutt

    hutt Member

    Adam

    Very quick reply. Command was 1st Army, certainly for the begining but I can't answer for how 1st and 8th came together later for Sicily and Italy. If anyone else can explain how this worked I would be very interested.

    I can, however, say that my father was quite pround and keen to point out that he had been 1st Army and not 8th. I have a feeling they felt a little in the shadow of Monty!

    Graham
     

Share This Page