It's back - ra39-45

Discussion in 'Royal Artillery' started by Derek Barton, Jan 2, 2021.

  1. Richard Lewis

    Richard Lewis Member

    Already asked at Lommel Artillery Range :)
     
  2. JohnB1974

    JohnB1974 Member

    Hi Derek. A local historian had produced a timeline for a small country house near me - Mitton Hall, Great Mitton, Whalley, Nr Clitheroe, Lancs (although in 39-45 would have been West Riding of Yorks). I have attached the timeline. For 39-45 its states it was used as "HQ for officers of 3rd field Regiment". Presumably this is an RA Regiment but a brief search around - including your excellent site - can find no mention of a presence in this rural northwester back water! The Royal Engineers had a training facility at a disused mill in nearby Low Moor, Clitheroe - but I can't find a reference to a "field regiment" as an organisational unit? Can you shed any light on this at all? Thanks
    John
     

    Attached Files:

  3. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Hi John, definitely not 3 Field Regt RA as they were in India at the start of the war then N Africa & Italy. They didn't come back to the UK until June 1945. The only other possibility would be 3 Field Training Regiment but they were based in Brockhurst, Hampshire until disbanded in July 1943.
    As the Royal Engineers had a training facility nearby, I would suggest they are the most likely candidates. The RE had Field Companies & Field Brigades in Infantry Divisions and Field Squadrons in Armoured Divisions. I have seen an Assault Regiment (although I haven't seen a Field one).
    Maybe whoever produced the document presumed they were a Regiment. Sorry, that's the best I can do.
    Derek
     
  4. Andreas

    Andreas Working on two books

    Could be 3rd Medium Regiment?

    All the best

    Andreas
     
  5. JohnB1974

    JohnB1974 Member

    Thank you Derek - that's really helpful. I'll pop over to the RE section!! :)
     
  6. JohnB1974

    JohnB1974 Member

    Thank you for that.
     
  7. mvdv84

    mvdv84 Well-Known Member

    Interesting website. Great job!
    These are the guy's I like to find more info about (and their Regimental WD) to profile them on commonwealth-adegem.com

    400514 WEBSTER, DAVID (76 Field Regt.)
    400517 STYLES, JAMES ALFRED HAMPTON (67 Field Regt.)
    400527 ANGUS, ALEXANDER ROBERT (56 Medium Regt.)
    400529 PERKINS, FREDERICK JOHN (H.Q. 6 H.A.A. Regt.)
    400615 BAILEY, JAMES HENRY (2 Medium Regt.)
    400620 THOMAS, MERLYN 56 (4th Bn. The King's Own Royal Regt. [Lancaster]) Anti-Tank Regt.)
    400712 WARES, WILLIAM (76 Field Regt.)
    440921 CHRISTIE, HAROLD (244 Bty., 20 Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    440921 HAYLETT, CLIFFORD STEWART (20 Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    440921 LAWTON, WILLIAM (244 Bty., 20 Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    440922 HYDE, HUGH MCDERMITT (360 Bty. 40 (6th Bn. The Sherwood Foresters [Notts. and Derby Regt.]) Searchlight Regt.)
    440927 TANNER, SYDNEY DOUGLAS (55 Bty., 32 Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    441015 OSMAN, HERBERT PASCOE (1 Heavy Regt.)
    441020 EVERETT, EDWARD BERTIE GEORGE (11 Medium Regt.)
    441020 RIDER, WILLIAM (11 Medium Regt.)
    441020 SUTHERILL, KENNETH LESLIE (11 Medium Regt.)
    441025 KING, IVAN GERALD (120 Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    441025 TOZER, EDWIN JOHN (130 (4/5th Bn. The Queen's Edinburgh Royal Scots) Lt. A.A. Regt.)
    441025 WEBB, JOHN RAYMOND (120 Light A.A. Regt)
    441031 WHITE, FRANK BERNARD (9 Medium Regt. (8th Bn. The Buffs [Royal East Kent Regt.]))
    441101 MCADAM, ALBER (1 Heavy Regt.)
    441101 SEARLE, GEORGE HENRY (1 Heavy Regt.)
     
  8. Uncle Target

    Uncle Target Mist over Dartmoor

    This is part of my research I have tried to locate relatives in the area that he was living in as I come from there myself.
    None of the relatives that I know of men in the Regiment know anything about him.
    See the thread below. We would dearly like to know more as his fate was mentioned at many Regimental and Dunkirk Veteran reunions.
    All that was found was that his driver attended a reunion telling them that the last he saw of him "he was advancing towards the enemy armed with a revolver".
    He could not recall exactly where, as they had travelled many miles without sleep, so he was left to rest in order to carry on when Capt Styles returned but he never did.
    If you find out more or have any further questions please let me know.

    68644 Captain 'Jimmy' James Alfred Hampton STYLES, 67 Field Regt RA: 17/05/1940, buried Adegem

    Should we not merge with this thread for continuation?

    Continued from previous thread which disappeared for a while.
    I am in touch with families of men from the 67th Field Regt and researched all that I can in Worcester, both the Archives and the Army Reserve Centre 67th Field Regt Archive.
    I have searched both the records in the County Archive at The Hive, the 67th Field Regiment records and Dunkirk Veterans memorabilia in the Army Reserve Centre. I have discussed it with the curator of the Mercian museum (ex Worcesters Museum) which shares the building wth the ARC.
    A colleague has contact with the Administrator of the defunct Dunkirk Veterans Association Branch but has no details of him. They spent time searching for his grave every year when visiting De Panne but never found it.
    He appears in Jonathan Raban · Belt, Boots and Spurs: Dunkirk, 1940 · LRB 4 October 2017
    I found his details on line via CWGC when researching for a book which I wrote for the relatives. Larkhill has no record of the 67th Field Regt.
    I did not find anything on Ancestry. I have also been in touch with Albourne History Group where they were stationed prior to leaving for France.
    Capt Styles' driver attended a reunion many years ago telling them that he was last seen "Advancing towards the enemy armed with a revolver". He could not remember where as they had driven many miles and in dire need of sleep, so he rested awaiting Capt Styles return. The column had to move on Capt Styles did not come back, so he had to carry on to Dunkirk. They made an orderly return to the coast where they set up the guns to defend the beaches until their Ammunition ran out.
    Perhaps with you being in the locality, you may be able to find out more, I would gladly try to help you if I can. We would be interested to find out where and how he died. It appears from CWGC records that that he was possibly found and buried later. I do know approximately where the column was during the period that he disappeared and the dates given by CWGC.
    Attached my rather poor sketch of their final location together with an excerpt from a Centenary Brochure telling their story.
     

    Attached Files:

    Last edited: Jun 13, 2022
    mvdv84 likes this.
  9. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    Honestly, I feel like topics should remain on their original topic, but that's just me.
     
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  10. Uncle Target

    Uncle Target Mist over Dartmoor

    I have I think found a solution without merging. Just thought that Derek could end up answering dozens of enquiries when he probably has enough to do.
    I will copy & paste the enquiry andmy reply to the Capt Jimmy Styles thread.
     
    Derek Barton likes this.
  11. Chris C

    Chris C Canadian

    Incredibly small note, I was just hunting down this info about where men in the UK might have received training on SPs and thought I'd share. This puts 51st Anti-Tank Training Regiment (SP) in Catterick, at least by the end of the war.

    Source is the RA section of "Lessons of the Campaign in NW Europe 1944-1945 2 Armoured Replacement Group". (at the Tank Museum archive.) And how I wish I'd photographed the whole thing, now!

    Don't know why but the forum seems to be shrinking the whole page image.

    Screen Shot 2022-06-26 at 4.09.49 PM.png
     

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  12. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Chris, many thanks for that, page updated. These little snippets of information are invaluable as they are often overlooked in contemporary documents. So many things were not recorded because "everyone knew ......". Maybe they did back then but its not so easy to find out now.
    As an example, trying finding out which gun tractors a field regiment had. Most accounts, both historical and official, will tell you "Quads". But which ones ! You have a choice of Morris C8 (3 models), Ford, CMP Chevy/Ford, Guy Ant, Karrier Spider.
    So, thanks again Chris and if any one finds any bit of information that you think may be of use to the site, please let me know.
    Derek
     
  13. JRMG

    JRMG New Member

    Derek
    Many congratulations on your most excellent Gunner site, it is a quite excellent piece of in depth research which I use regularly. I noticed a small typo against 1 Mountain Regiment RA where you have anotated the regiment as being part of 51 (Highland) Infantry Division from June to October 1942. I believe that in fact that from July 1942 to March 1945 1 Mountain Regiment RA were part of 52 (Lowland) Infantry Division.....possibly a oxymoron?

    James
     
  14. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Thank you James for pointing that out and for the kind remarks about my site. The page has been corrected.
    Derek
     
  15. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Bit of an update and a new page I would like you to see before it goes live. The section on AA Brigades is now finished (although not complete). Like all pages on the site it is still being researched and updated where possible.
    The new page is a table of Coast Observer Detachments. Little is known about these so the table is mostly a list of units, who they were attached to, dates & locations. There are many gaps in the list but it is unclear at the moment if these missing units actually existed. Please take a look and let me have your comments and any additions or corrections.
    Thanks
    Derek
     
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  16. Uncle Target

    Uncle Target Mist over Dartmoor

    Checked your latest link above perhaps a bit to early as it "cant be found".
    I presume Coastal Observer Detachments are as it says on the tin. Look forward to seeing it.
    I'm off at a tangent as usual. currently researching Combined Operations Bombardment Units.
    An officer from the 67th seems to have left in 1941 to join them.

    Much appreciate your website a good starting point for research into everything RA.
    Clear concise and easy to use with a title that even I can remember.

    When the Prytanies' seat shines white in the island of Siphnos,
    White-browed all the forum—need then of a true seer's wisdom..........
    (Pythia at Delphi - Wikipedia)
     
    Last edited: Aug 6, 2023
  17. SteveDee

    SteveDee Well-Known Member

  18. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Sorry about that folks, its working now.
     
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  19. Derek Barton

    Derek Barton Senior Member

    Please note that the link above now redirects to the main site. As I had zero response to my request for feedback, I went ahead and published the page.
     
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  20. SteveDee

    SteveDee Well-Known Member

    Sorry Derek. Just got back on the case, and this looks like a great addition to your excellent site.

    Are you planning to add details of Radars CD via the Guns & Equipment page? I like the links on that page that take you to pictures, data and info. Likewise searchlights.
     

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