Afternoon all, Doing some family research, and whilst awaiting a reply SPVA I did a bit of rooting around in some family documents. Long story short, my great uncle served in 22 Field Artillery Regt throughout the war. My question is, is there any information online regarding whereabouts of units etc. I'm aware of unit war diaries etc. but was curious if anyone had any thoughts other than that. Regards, Mike
Mike, 22 Field Regiment Royal Artillery was part of the British Fourth Infantry Division. I've seen original copy's of Hugh Williamson's book go for £200, or asking.. They rarely come up for sale. A while back, I purchased a reprint from PARTIZAN PRESS In Nottingham. ASK@CALIVERBOOKS.COM Appendix A, B, & C attached. Good luck in finding a original copy. The War diaries would be a cheaper option. Sorry Mike, I forgot to mention, DREW 5233 do's a smashing job of copying War diaries at a very fare price. Regards. Stu.
Hi Mike 4th British Infantry Division (4 Inf Div) were sent to Greece in December 1944 to reinforce troops who were fighting against a Greek Communist Insurgency trying to seize power and had all but a 2 square mile of the center of Athens under their control. 22 Field Regiment Royal Artillery (inc LAD) part of 10 Infantry Brigade arrived in Greece (Phaleron) on 16-Dec-44, departing Taranto, Italy, on 14/12/1944. 837 troops had sailed on board HMT Cameronia. The three 4 Inf DIv Royal Artillery (RA) regiments (22, 30 & 77) and their Anti-Tank Regiment (14) were merged and used in an infantry role for the duration of the civil war and renamed the 4th Inf DIv RA Rifle Battalion. Only a handful of field guns were brought over. The structure of 4th Inf DIv Rifle Battalion was (names and numbers added where available): A Company (from 22 Fd Regt RA formed 13 Dec 44 arrived Glifadha 16 Dec 44) Major G.S.Goode, RA Company Commander Captain G. Thornton, RA 2 I/C Lieutenant D.G.E. Hoare, RA 1. Platoon Commander Lieutenant R.H. Twinch, RA 2. Platoon Commander Lieutenant A.F. Howell, RA 3. Platoon Commander Lieutenant M.E.B. Peters, RA Company HQ Duty Officer B Company (from 30 Fd Regt RA formed 11 Dec 44) Major J.G.N. Watson, RA (112 Bty) Company Commander Captain H.G. Pearce-Batten, RA (104 Bty) 2 I/C Till 25 Dec 44 Captain T.E. Nuttal, RA (112 Bty) 2 I/C From 25 Dec 44 Lieutenant W. H. Todd , RA (104 Bty) 1. Platoon Commander 1 Off and 36 ORs - 3 Sections of 10 from 104 Field Bty Lieutenant Newman, RA (111 Bty) 2. Platoon Commander 1 Off and 36 ORs - 3 Sections of 10 from 111 Field Bty Lieutenant J.C.R. Fieldsend, RA (112 Bty) 3. Platoon Commander 1 Off and 36 ORs - 3 Sections of 10 from 112 Field Battery Lieutenant E. Brown, RA (112 Bty) Company HQ Duty Officer HQ Coy 3 Offs and 22 ORs C Company (from 77 Fd Regt RA formed 12 Dec 44) Major F.P.C. Trahearn, RA Company Commander Captain , RA 2 I/C Lieutenant , RA 1. Platoon Commander 1 Platoon from 305 Field Battery Lieutenant , RA 2. Platoon Commander 1 Platoon from 306 Field Battery Lieutenant , RA 3. Platoon Commander 1 Platoon from 455 Field Battery Lieutenant , RA Company HQ Duty Officer Coy HQ from 305 Field Battery D Company (from 14 A-Tk Regt RA formed 11 Dec 44 - 6 Offs 130 ORs) Major R.H. Adams, RA Company Commander Captain , RA 2 I/C Lieutenant , RA 1. Platoon Commander Lieutenant , RA 2. Platoon Commander Lieutenant , RA 3. Platoon Commander Lieutenant , RA Company HQ Duty Officer E Company (from 22 Fd Regt RA formed 20 Dec 44 arrived Glifadha 26 Dec 44) Major H.A.M. Earle, RA Company Commander Captain E.G. Smith, RA 2 I/C Lieutenant D.B. Bradshaw, RA 13. Platoon Commander LieutenantM.G. Reed, RA 14. Platoon Commander Lieutenant J.H.Whitelaw, RA 15. Platoon Commander F Company (from 77 Fd Regt RA formed 1 Jan 45) Major , RA Company Commander Captain , RA 2 I/C Lieutenant , RA 1. Platoon Commander 1 Platoon from 306 Field Battery Lieutenant , RA 2. Platoon Commander 1 Platoon from 306 Field Battery Lieutenant , RA Company HQ Duty Officer Coy HQ from 306 Field Battery I have the war diaries for Dec 1944 (WO 170/932) and Jan 1945 (WO 170/4732). PM me your email address if you want a copy. Hope this helps Gus
Mike. As Gus said, 22 Regt RA directly supported 10 Inf Bde. That would put your great uncle in support of the 10 Inf Bde assault over the Rapido on 11-13 May 44 that included the building of the Amazon bridge. You need to check out Terence Cuneo's amazing painting entitled 'Crossing the Rapido'. If your great uncle was in one of the Artillery Groups then he would have been up with one of the three infantry battalions of 10 Inf Bde - either 1/6 East Surreys, 2 Beds & Herts or 2 DCLI. If he was on the gun line then he would have been somewhere behind Monte Trocchio. Regards Frank
http://www.sappershop.com/product_info.php?products_id=431 Bridging the Rapido [PR01] The Amazon Bridge By Terence Cuneo This painting was commissioned by the Corps to commemorate the Italian Campaign in the Second World War. The picture depicts the activities of the Sappers on the night of 12/13th May 1944, briding the Rapido River close to Monte Cassino. After a shallow bridgehead had been established it became imperative that there should be a bridge on 4th Division's front. This was acheived by Sappers from 7, 59 and 225 Field Companies building an 80 foot Class 30 Bailey Bridge under constant enemy fire, in under 12 hours. Sadly 15 Sappers were killed and 57, including three officers, were wounded.
Lesley. Thank you. I am out in Italy at the moment running a battlefield tour so i cannot get to my PC. Great help. Regards Frank
Thought I would attach these scans, taken from the Engineers in the Italian Campaign. 1943-1945. Printed by Printing and Stationery Services, C.M.F. Stu.
Hello Mike, Between 23-30 June 1944 22 Field Regiment was on the Trasimene Line in Central Italy and then followed through on the approach to Cortona. See my two books 'The Trasimene Line. June-July 1944 and 'Cortona 1944' both available on line from www.fondazioneranieri.org. (Sorry but I can't get the link to work) Best wishes, Vitellino (Janet Kinrade Dethick)
Hi Mike my grandfather also served in 22 field regt. He was stationed at Shorncliffe in the dickso boys battery from 1932. He left with yhe bef unfortunately he was lost at Dunkirk he was part of the rear guard they stayed to hold the line whilst the army retreated to the beaches. Hope you find the info you are looking for! Regards
Hi Peter-When you say lost, do you mean killed? I've always got an interest in anyone who served in the BEF.
Mike, My father John Fearon served in the 4th Division throughout the war, from the BEF and Dunkirk through to the operation in Greece. He had a copy of Hugh Williamson's book which I read when a boy. That copy was lost and I have been looking out for one for several years. No success until last week when I chanced on a copy on Amazon for £21. You can also get an electronic version - on CD - from MLRS Books for about £19. regards Alec
Thanks Gus, that's helpful background. I'm here today because of that operation in Greece. After the fighting died down my father was driving his jeep in Athens when he narrowly avoided hitting two young women as they crossed the road. One of these was to become my mother. Picture of the jeep attached - my parents are the couple on the right. regards Alec
Alec. If you want to see what your father got up to with 4 Inf Div at Cassino, I am running a trip there on 8-11 Jun 17. Details are at www.cassinobattlefields.co.uk. 4 Inf Div played a huge part in breaking the Gustav Line by finally establishing a river crossing over the Rapido - which the Americans had singularly failed to do four months earlier. It is quite a story. Was your father in 22 Fd Regt? Regards Frank
Frank, Thanks for the info about the battlefield trip - I'll keep it in mind. My father was in 22nd Field Regiment from 1939 until June 1944 when he was appointed Intelligence Officer with 10th Infantry Brigade. regards Alec
Alec. That means that he would have done all the Intelligence planning for 10 Inf Bde's part in Op HONKER - the 4 Inf Div assault on 11 May 44. The awesome Amazon bridge crossing that was immortalised by Terence Cuneo in his painting 'Crossing the Rapido' was in 10 Inf Bde's sector. By all accounts, Brig Shoosmith his Bde Comd was a very competent chap - and a fellow gunner. Even better. I have followed 10 Inf Bde's path from the fall of Rome to the capture of their part of the San Fortunato Ridge at Rimini. Your father would have had a role in that. I am with a group in three weeks travelling that route - Rome - Trasimeno - Arezzo - Florence - Rimini. I will think of your father. Regards Frank
Thanks Andy. One reason for appointing him to the intelligence role is perhaps because he was a linguist, with good knowledge of German and French though not, so far as I know, Italian. Alec
Hello, I'm doing some family research for my wife. Her grandmother's brother was in 22nd Field Regiment and was killed in action 24 June 1944. He was Gunner 1148484 John Milne Reid and is buried in Assisi war cemetery. He was one of 5 from the same regiment that died the same day and are buried there. I don't have anybody alive (except his niece who was 3 at the time) to ask but the family story from an uncle who was at Cassino was that he was shelled on a vehicle. Could this be during the event described in June's diary posted above? Could he have been with the others who died the same day from the same regiment? His body was moved to Assisi in 1945 but I haven't been able to work out where he was originally buried which I think would give a clue to where he fell. I'm new to this area of research but would love to find out more about the events leading up to this and where John had been in the months leading up to it? Can someone (gently) tell me what resources might get me started on this and what I could hope to learn? Thanks, Calum
Calum. Being buried in Assisi is some way from where 22 Fd Regt RA were supporting 4 Inf Div to the west of Lake Trasimeno at Strada which is mid way between Lake Chuisi and Lake Trasimeno. The CWGC at Foiano della Chiana, north the north of Strada, is much nearer than Assisi. It may have been that he was initially wounded and then evacuated to a Field Hospital in the Assisi area. Regards Frank
