12th Bn. KRRC in 1944

Hello,
I am currently working on a book about the 8th Armoured Brigade. I got some trouble getting the exact TO & E of a Motor Battalion like the 12th KRRC.
I mean I have the TO&E from the War Diary but I can't find out how Platoons are numbered as it is quite different from an regular infantry Battalion.
Would you have any information about it?
Thanks
Fred

Commanding Officer : Lieutenant-Colonel
Second-in-command : Major
Adjutant : Captain
Intelligence Officer : Lieutenant
Signal Officer : Captain
Quartermaster : Captain
Mechanical Transport Officer : Lieutenant
Technical Adjutant : Captain
Medical Officer : Captain

A Company :

Commanding Officer : Major
Second-in-command : Captain
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Scout Platoon Commander : Lieutenant

B Company :

Commanding Officer : Major
Second-in-command : Captain
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Scout Platoon Commander : Lieutenant

C Company :

Commanding Officer : Major
Second-in-command : Captain
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Motorized Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Scout Platoon Commander : Lieutenant

Anti-Tank Platoon Commander : Lieutenant
Anti-Tank Platoon Commander : Lieutenant

 

Slight difference as to whether you want the War Establishment (rather than T/O&E, which was an exclusively US term, so won't appear in contemporary descriptions) or the 'order of battle' or OOB. The latter tends to be used for formations much higher up the food chain, such as Corps and Armies. It probably fits more to your above layout though as identifying subunits rather than detailed unit and subunit organization.

For WE you have Mike's section here, search under Trux. Also the website of an old collecting cohort of mine, which has the June 1943 WE transcribed in its original format.

http://www.warestablishments.net/Great Britain/Infantry/Motor Battalion June 1943.pdf

This was superseded by a Feb 1944 version that was effectively identical save for a few vehicle changes. Note neither version lists halftracks as the Motor Platoons mounts.

For letter and number identifications, it generally proceeded from HQ Company down. I noticed that 8RB kept their Pl numbers largely as would be expected under the previous WE, which was;

Bn HQ
HQ Coy; Coy HQ, (No.1) Sig Pl, (No.2) Admin Pl
A Coy; Coy HQ, (Nos.3-5) three Mot Pls, (No.6) Scout Pl
B Coy; same (Nos.7-9) + (No.10)
C Coy; same (Nos.11-13) + (No.14)
D Coy; same (Nos.15-17) + (No.18)

8RB went with E to H for their Mot Coys on the early war layout I think, and E Coy became Support Coy when such was formed. They kept the Pl numbers across all the Coys and added No.19 to Sp Coy to account for it now having five Pls. If you've got the war diary for 12KRRC there should be some reference in there to Platoon numbers that will likely explain their particular system.

Just to note you haven't got Support Coy listed above, which would have been three Atk Pls and two MMG Pls.

Gary

 

Thanks for your answer Gary.
The only information regarding the platoon numbers are : Platoon N°14 is one out of two A/T Platoons.
The structure I copied on my first post is the one given in the 12th KRRC WD's dated June 1944.
Fred

 

Interesting. Re the Atk Pls, they may have decided to handle their 12 allotted 6-prs as two Pls of 6 guns each, rather than the authorised three Pls of 4 guns apiece. Is there any mention of Vickers MMGs in the WD? Might shed some light on what they did with them.

Re Platoon numbering, there's a reference here to 11 Platoon being a part of C Company;

http://counties.britishlegion.org.uk/media/67663/Sandbag Sep 2012.pdf

Now this is pure conjecture on my part, but if the Bn numbered its Pls starting from A Coy (rather than HQ Coy) and only had two Pls in Sp Coy, the last of these being No.14 Pl, that might be their system. How do they refer to the Pls in the WD if not by numbers, is it by the officer's name?

Gary

 

Re. The 12th KRRC Padre...

...according to...



...the Rev. Mark Green was to have taken this role, when the 24th Lancers were disbanded at the end of July 1944.

In event however, the death of Capt Revd. William Davies, the Padre of the 4th7thRDG actually occurred "the next day" -

Friday 28th July 1944... 28d7m1944...

4th7thRDG War Diary

At 2300 hrs. Boche aeroplane dropped a very large number of Anti Personnel bombs over the area occupied by RHQ. Captain W.Davies and Trp.Monks were killed and 2nd/Lt. J.P.Jones and 13 O.Rs were wounded.

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2956066/william-davies/

...and, by the looks of it, there must have been some fleet paperwork.

The Regimental History of the 4th7thRDG, might say something too, although re. what might have been Mark Green's initial, immediate destination...

...whilst above it says 12KRRC. He actually went to the 4th7thRDG.

I don't know if there are any records of who the 12KRRC's Padre's were? Or if the Rev Mark Green did actually join them, albeit briefly.