Who was at Tobruk April-Oct 1941

[Owen]

spidgeI still cringe when I read (like an article recently) "that Tobruk was held by "British" troops for eight months during 1941................................?

Geoff, why cringe? After all you lot still have OUR flag in top corner of yours!

Originally Posted by Owen D

Geoff, why cringe? After all you lot still have OUR flag in top corner of yours!

spidge
The cringe is for the imbecilic moron who wrote the article.

I know where I come from and don't mind it a bit.

What I do mind is people who write about a topic and don't get it right.

There are no British soldiers who would like to see this type of error appear in print, especially the men of the four British regiments of RA that supported them during those 8 months.

They knew that 3,000 Aussies were killed or wounded in that rathole.

Owen,

Do you know what those four British RA regiments were?

I have a list of the total Australian units that took part but not the British compliment.

Don't know of top of head but looking here,
http://members.tripod.com/~nigelef/regtsumm.htm

1 RHA
Tobruk 1941 - 9 Aust Inf Div
Tobruk 1941 - 70 Inf Div

104 (Essex Yeo) Regt RHA
Tobruk 4/41-10/41 - 9 Aust & 70 Inf Div

107 (S Notts Hussars Yeo) Regt RHA Tobruk 4/41-10/41 - 9 Aust & 70 Inf Div
http://members.tripod.com/~nigelef/regtsumm.htm#RHA


51 (Westmorland & Cumberland Yeo) Fd Regt
Tobruk 1941 - 9 Aust Inf Div

3 RHA
Tobruk 4/41-10/41 - 9 Aust & 70 Inf Divs


149 ATk Regt
Tobruk 1941 - 9 Aust & 70 Inf Divs

[spidge]

Apologies Owen.

I added this to the PM before opening the thread.

The 70th (British ex 6th) was not designated as such until late 41 and only relieved the Aust 9th & Aust 7th (18th brigade) in October 41.

The only British contingents were Artillery & Armoured.

The 104th was a support to 8th armoured who never fought as a complete formation, however I do not know where the others were from.

I had always read it was only 4 regiments. Maybe one of them was relieved by another at some stage?

Cheers

Geoff

[Owen]

Combined Arms Research Library

The forty-eight 25-pounders of the three Royal horse artillery (RHA) regiments and the twelve 18-pounders and twelve 4.5-inch howitzers of the 51st Field Regiment were organized into three groups to cover the three infantry brigades on line.16 The 51st Field Regiment was in direct support of the 26th Brigade in the west; the 104th RHA was in support of the 24th Brigade in the east. In the central (southern) sector held by the 20th Brigade, the 1st and 107th RHA were formed into a tactical group of thirty-two guns. The guns were mainly employed at the escarpment below Pilastrino and near Sidi Mahmud.


With the exception of the 8th Battery of the 3d Light Antiaircraft (AA) Regiment, which was Australian, all the antiaircraft guns were manned by British troops. The 4th AA Brigade consisted of the 153d and 235th Heavy AA Batteries from the 51st Heavy AA Regiment; the 14th Light AA Regiment; and the 39th, 40th, and 57th Light AA Batteries from the 13th Light AA Regiment.17

Antitank units were the Australian 2-3d Antitank Regiment with four of its six batteries-the 9th, 10th, 11th, and 12th; the three brigade antitank companies; and the British 3d RHA Antitank Regiment, with its M and J Batteries but minus D Battery.



HQ Royal Horse Artillery

• 1st RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders)
  3d RHA (minus one btry) (16 x 2-pounder antitank guns)
  104th RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders)
  107th RHA Regt (16 x 25-pounders)
  51st Field Regt (12 x 18-pounders and 12 x 4.5 inch how)
  2-3d Aust Antitank Regt (Unk no., type, Bofors
  (minus one btry) 37-mm; Breda 47/32-mm; 2-pounders)

Royal Artillery

HQ 4th Antiaircraft (AA) Bde

• 13th Light AA Regt
  14th Light AA Regt
  51st Heavy AA Regt
  3d Aust Light AA Regt

[spidge]

From the AWM site:
UNITS WHICH TOOK PART IN THE SIEGE OF TOBRUK [Australian War Memorial]

They definitely had some firepower!!

And from Digger History down the bottom of the page shows the attached!
Some extras I did not know about!


Tobruk; Australian toughness beats Rommel

eg-

1st (British) Royal Northumberland Fusiliers. A Machinegun Battalion. (Armed with Vickers Machineguns).
1st (British) Kings Dragoon Guards, with 30 Marmon Harrington Armoured Cars.

[Owen]

Other British Units at Tobruk from source quoted in post #3
Combined Arms Research Library

Notts Yeomanry (coast defense)

Royal Engineers (under chief royal engineer, 9th Aust Div)

• 295th Field Co Royal Engineers
  551st Tps Co Royal Engineers
  4th Field Sqd Royal Engineers
  143d Field Park Troops

Signals (under Cdr Signals, 9th Aust Div)

• K Base Section
  27th Line Maintenance Section

Royal Army Service Corps (RASC)

• 309th Reserve Motor Co
  345th Reserve Motor Co
  550th Co
  RASC 4th Lt AA Bde
  RASC Sec 13th Lt AA Regt
  No. 1 Water Tank Co

Medical

• 16th MAC

Ordnance (Royal Army Ordnance Corps [RAOC])

• 2d Armored Div Workshops RAOC
  Y Army Tank Receiving Section, RAOC 2d Spt Gp Ord Field Park Sec, RAOC

[Mark F]

Does anybody know more about this unit? Notts Yeomanry (coast defense) What were the coast defences? Captured Italian guns, RN or RA coastal guns?

Thanks

Mark F

[Owen]

'B' Squadron, Royal Wiltshire Yeomanry were at Tobruk from January to June 1941 they were a searchlight unit at that time.

[Tom Canning]

Spidge -
I think I am right in saying that the "armoured" element at Tobruk in the initial siege was remnants of 3rd bde of Gen, Gambier- Parry's 2nd Armoured Div which was wiped out at Mechili on Rommel's first foray from El Ageila after Beda Fomm - at that time Gens. Neame V.C. and O'Conner as well as Brig John Combe went into the 'bag' - these tank units were the 1st and 5th RTR who joined 1st KDG's in the defence of Tobruk - they were looked after by 2nd Armoured base workshops of RAOC - before the REME was founded - so along with the Artillery already mentioned - the British were well represented.....
Cheers