78th British Infantry Division - "The Battleaxe Div"

Discussion in 'Higher Formations' started by Ron Goldstein, Nov 4, 2010.

  1. gpo son

    gpo son Senior Member

    Frank the 1st CAB was under command of 13th corp not 1st Can Corp. Pretty sure the Ontario's regiment was in Aquino on the 19th. With I think the Buff's but I am no Battleaxe expert. the three rivers and calgaries crossed the river with the 8Th Indian div and the 78th took over the lead from them, then after it appeared that the Daidem had run it course the Can Corp put together Chesterfield. Do I have that right.
    The thing I still have not had an answer to is if the ontario's were in aquino on the 19th then why did the NIH not know about the Panzer turnins until they got shredded by them on the 23rd as clearly the Onartio's had the same problem on the 19th? or did the NIH know?
    By the way thanks for sending me your report on chesterfield. the way you broke it up was very helpful in understanding the progression of the battle.
    Matt
     
  2. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    Minden - not so -

    as the Calgary's and Trois Rivieres were part of the Cdn 1st AB who took a beating at Ortona - and sent off to recuperate with a British Division - to train for the Trasemino battles - 16th/5th and 17/21st were part of 26th AB in 6th AD - So the real support for the 1st Cdn Inf Div was looked after Gerry's 25th ATB and handed over to the 6th STH Africa AD - the 21st ATB then took over and supported them until they went off to Belgium in the feb 1945

    Cheers
     
  3. gpo son

    gpo son Senior Member

    Frank I crudely copy and pasted this from nicholson's History of 'the Canadians in Italy' I will find the link and send it along. As Tom Has just mentioned (and he is amply more qualified to speak on this than I) the IST CAB were in the thick of it until the 1st Can Corp took over and even then the three rivers regiment replaced the NIH on the evening of the 23rd and in the days following going up the Valley.
    Matt
    Here is the link hope it is helpful.
    http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/UN/Canada/CA/Italy/Italy_e.pdf



    its four assaulting battalions was to secure an immediate bridgehead at, and south of, the

    village of Sant' Angelo in Teodice (see p. 697), midway between Cassino and the Liri
    83

    (see Map 13). The three regiments of the 1st Canadian Armoured Brigade were under

    command of the Division, but until the Gari had been bridged the assaulting infantry

    would of course be without tanks. A novel form of support, however, was provided by

    three troops of the Three Rivers Regiment, which moved up to the east bank and covered

    the Indians' crossing* with high-explosive and machine-gun fire.

    85

    The attack got off to a bad start. The swift current capsized assault boats and swept

    many downstream (in one of the 4th Division's brigade sectors all but five boats out of

    forty had been lost by early morning);

    86 and the enemy's automatic and small-arms fire

    was even heavier than had been expected. Only a shallow bridgehead had been secured

    by daybreak. The vital business of constructing tank-bearing bridges had begun, but

    German domination of the 4th Division's precarious holding between Sant' Angelo and

    Cassino halted the work in this sector. On the left the Indians had been more successful,

    and the infantry had reached the lateral road which ran along the low escarpment west of

    the river. Exposed to withering fire, and hampered by fog and the smoke from the dense
    screens with which each side was attempting to confuse the other, Indian engineers toiled
    heroically throughout the night preparing launching sites and approach ramps, and
    bolting together their Bailey sections into the required span. By 8:40 on the morning of
    the 12th they had completed "Oxford" bridge, about a mile south of Sant' Angelo; but
    their efforts at a second site above the village had been stopped by the German fire.


    87

    Five hundred yards below "Oxford" bridge, at a point where the Gari curved close to the

    lateral road, a third site, "Plymouth", had been selected; but throughout the night it had

    remained free from engineer activity. A new experiment in assault-bridging was about to be

    made. About an hour after the completion of "Oxford" bridge two Shermans of The Calgary

    Regiment approached the Gari, the front one, with turret removed, bearing the weight of a

    complete 100-foot Bailey span, which had been constructed in relative concealment from the
    enemy's fire, 600 yards to the rear. An officer walked coolly alongside, controlling their
    direction and speed by telephone. Without pausing, the leading tank drove down the soft bank
    into the bed of the river, the crew escaping just before it submerged. The rear tank thrust
    forward, and the bridge slid across the back of the carrying Sherman to the far
    bank. The pusher tank disconnected, and fifteen minutes from the time it left its
    building-site the bridge was in position* across the 60-foot water gap.89

    Each of the two assaulting Indian brigades now had a bridge over the river, and

    without delay troops of Canadian tanks, the olive branches of their camouflage belying

    their warlike intent, drove across to succour the hard-pressed infantry. Two squadrons of
    The Ontario Regiment, supporting the 17th Indian Brigade in the Sant' Angelo sector,
    crossed at "Oxford", but before they could reach the lateral road half their tanks were
    bogged in the marshy river flat. During the afternoon two Sherman recovery tanks of the
    59th Light Aid Detachment R.C.E.M.E. returned fourteen of these to action,

    90 and the


    Ontarios spent the rest of the day under heavy fire clearing isolated enemy positions

    south of Sant' Angelo and slowly working their way northward along the river road,

    which provided the only approach for armour to the village.

    91 On the 19th Brigade's front,

    "Plymouth" bridge was temporarily put out of action by a shell after only four tanks of

    the Calgaries' leading "A" Squadron had crossed. "Oxford" bridge now provided the sole

    means by which armour could cross the Gari; yet before nightfall the greater part of five

    Canadian squadrons had reached the German side of what the enemy had regarded as an

    impassable tank obstacle. ("A" Squadron of The Ontario Regiment remained on the near

    bank giving supporting fire to the 4th Division's brigade north of Sant' Angelo.) There
    were frequent delays, as Shermans were trapped in the treacherous footing between road
    and river, and many were stopped by mines.



    92 Those that reached firm ground quickly

    relieved the pressure on the Indian infantry. On the left flank of the bridgehead the

    surviving four tanks from the Calgary "C" Squadron, unable to link up with the infantry,

    who had become widely dispersed in the withering fire, pushed westward 1000 yards to

    the village of Panaccioni,† playing havoc with the enemy's strongpoints, and engaging

    transport retreating up the valley.
    94


    * The troops of the Three Rivers Regiment had been carefully trained for three weeks for their night fire task, and


    there seems little doubt that the volume of fire which they blasted across the river helped to keep the Germans' heads down


    as well as greatly contributing to the morale of the assaulting infantry. The Commander of the 17th Indian Brigade declared

    that the assistance of the Canadian tanks was invaluable.


    84
     
  4. minden1759

    minden1759 Senior Member

    Matt.

    The whole thing is starting to make sense now. Thanks for the clarity.

    Much appreciated.

    Regards

    Frank
     
  5. Staffsyeoman

    Staffsyeoman Member

    I'm sure I bumped into this chap on the ferry back from Normandy this year! Excuse the description but is he a rather small, wiry gentleman?

    That indeed is him!
     
  6. 4jonboy

    4jonboy Daughter of a 56 Recce

    Hello Frank
    The following is some text I have taken from the book "Cassino, The Hollow Victory" by John Ellis. It mentions the bridges you are referring to.

    At the beginning of the battle, Leese had been undecided whether to commit 78 Division in the British or Indian sector but on the afternoon of the 13th (May) he made up his mind. In fact he had little choice. The failure of 28 Brigade had left him short of men in 4 Division's bridgehead and pressure there had increased yet more because the Polish Corps had been terribly mauled in their first attack on the massif. They had been pulled back to regroup at 14.00 on the 12th and it was clear that a renewed attack could only succeed once the British had sufficiently diverted 1 Parachute Division's attention by cutting Highway Six. But 4 Division could only attempt this with confidence if their left flank, already somewhat exposed, was protected and it was to do this that 78 Division was directed into the northern bridgehead. Kirkman issued his own instructions late that same evening, The fresh Division was to cross the Rapido at once, by Congo, London and Oxford bridges, and attack out of the bridgehead at the first opportunity. Highway Six, it was hoped, could be cut by the night of the 14/15th and the Polish Corps was alerted to attack at first light on the 15th.
    Unfortunately 78 Division fell badly behind schedule from the start and once again many of the difficulties they encountered were staff-made; in this case caused by inaccurate assessments of the conditions at the bridge sites and of the abilities of the sappers to overcome the dearth of approach and exit tracks which doubled the difficulties of bridging. Incredibly, neither London or Congo had actually been built when the Corps order for 78 Division's advance was issued. London was directly in front of Sant' Angelo and it had always been assumed that work on it could not begin in earnest until that village had been completely cleared, which did not happen until the late afternoon. As it was a heavy 40-tonner, its erection could not be complete until dawn on the 14th at the earliest. Work on Congo had started but it had not got very far as no one had bothered to tell 4 Division's engineers that there was any immediate intention of supplementing Amazon with another bridge. The first their commander heard of it was when the Corps movement order reached Divisional HQ and he thus had no hope of getting the requisite men to the site before the early morning of the 14th. It is hardly surprising, therefore, to find the following entry in 4 Division's War Diary "A phone message from BGS caused considerable consternation as it was decided (that) at dawn on the following day 78 Division would pass through 4 Division sector and cross at Congo Bridge (not yet built) and take over the sector allocated to 28 Brigade".
    In the event Congo was not completed until 08.00 on the 14th. But 78 Division were under strict orders to move that night and so they had to do the best they could with the bridges available, Amazon, Oxford and Plymouth. But the last of these was a somewhat uncertain structure, as well as being as far away from 4 Division's sector as possible, and the other two were the lifelines of the Divisions already in the line. Both were badly needed that night to funnel supplies and local reinforcements into the bridgehead, and neither Ward nor Russell was prepared to simply hand them over to Major-General Charles Keightley, the commander of 78 Division. As a result the Divisions units "had to be sent forward to these two bridges as spaces occurred in the (other) Divisions' traffic over them. As luck would have it, Amazon bridge was blocked for three hours during the night by some ammunition trucks which had been hit and set on fire near the bridge". Keightley's leading brigade, the 38th (Irish) did not arrive in the bridgehead until the afternoon of the 14th.

    Lesley
     
  7. gpo son

    gpo son Senior Member

    Lesley But 78 Division were under strict orders to move that night and so they had to do the best they could with the bridges available, Amazon, Oxford and Plymouth. But the last of these was a somewhat uncertain structure, as well as being as far away from 4 Division's sector as possible, and the other two were the lifelines of the Divisions already in the line.

    that corresponds with the previous post regarding the builders of the bridges Amazon, and Plymouth (were built by Indain Sappers), Oxford was built by the 1st CAB, as they were an independant brigade they had there own engineer and support companies
     
  8. bexley84

    bexley84 Well-Known Member

    I am trying to work out which bridges across the Rapido the 78 Inf Div used when it moved through 4 Inf Div to take the lead in the Liri valley up to the Cassino-Pignataro road. I cannot seem to work out which Bdes crossed on Amazon and which ones crossed on Congo.

    Does anyone have a clue?

    Regards

    FdeP

    I think the times of the completion of the various bridges might help to focus attention on 38 (Irish) Brigade's and 11 Brigade's movements across the Gari from 14th May onwards.

    Congo was reported to have been completed by 586 Field Company RE at 0530 on 14th May, but when the 6 Skins arrived to cross it at 1000 they found further work was required and they eventually crossed over via that bridge at 1300, the Irish Rifles at 1400 and the Faughs at 2100 during that day/evening (source : 38 Brigade, 6 Inns, 2 LIR and 1 RIrF war diaries).

    They were then faced by the "impassable" Piopetto...the bridge over that stream "being broken" by 2/4 Hampshires on the evening of 14th May.

    Which was a factor in delaying the 78th Div's (led by the Skins) further forward progress until 15th May when the Irish Brigade were joined by 5 Northants on their right hand side - (perhaps someone with access to the respective 11 Brigade battalions' war diaries can confirm what bridge the 5 Northants and 2 LFs used).

    best
     
  9. Iane

    Iane Junior Member

    Do we know if Mr Eustace is still with us? I live in Widnes and would be very interested to know!
    Mr Eustace died in the very late seventies early eighties I'm sorry to say.
     
  10. Wills

    Wills Very Senior Member

  11. Ron Goldstein

    Ron Goldstein WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    Wills

    Thanks for the 8th Indian Indian Div info.

    On page 57 of my album I had a copy of the River Po German leaflet.
    (See below)

    Ron
     

    Attached Files:

  12. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

  13. bexley84

    bexley84 Well-Known Member

    Vitellino,

    Looking forward to reading the updated version. The intricacies of the battles around Trasimene in June 1944 (and beyond in July) seem often to be "overlooked"..and of course, there are some opportunities missed.

    By the way, that link doesn't seem to work...perhaps it's my browser choice.

    best
     
  14. Tony56

    Tony56 Member Patron

    Not sure if it has been mentioned but, according to ‘The Surreys in Italy’ the 1 Surreys travelled up Highway 6 on 14 May to an assembly area at the foot of Monte Trocchio. The area between Capua and Monte Trocchio was an assembly park for the whole of XIII Corps and the Eighth Army.

    On 16 May the 1 Surreys crossed the Rapido by Congo bridge and moved into the bridgehead formed by 4 Division, one of whose battalions was 1/6 Surreys.
     
    Ken P likes this.
  15. bexley84

    bexley84 Well-Known Member

    Tony,

    Yes, as you say, the East Surreys, crossing on 16th May, would definitely have used Congo - I think there is a slight question about the other 2 Bttns of 11 Brigade, who would have crossed the Gari either on the 14th or 15th May.

    I'm at Kew next week and going to do some reading/photographing of the May/June 1944 diaries of all the 78th Div/4th Div/6 Armoured Div units and that should close the gap in knowledge (if there actually is one).

    thanks.
     
  16. RAMC researcher

    RAMC researcher Junior Member

    Deleted - see later response.
     
  17. RAMC researcher

    RAMC researcher Junior Member

    I have now obtained copies of the two books about the 78th Division - "Algiers to Austria" by Cyril Ray and "Battleaxe Division" by Ken Ford. I admit I have not read them thoroughly yet but after a "speed read" I was disappointed to see that there appears to be very little information about the activities of any of the three Field Ambulance units (11th, 152nd and 217th) during the campaigns in North Africa and Italy.

    Can anyone comment on the possible reasons for this?

    BTW if anyone is researching men who served with the 11th Field Ambulance you may be interested to see a couple of photos I have put under the "North Africa and the Med" subforum. (See thread "Tunis May 1943").
     
  18. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    Vitellino,

    Looking forward to reading the updated version. The intricacies of the battles around Trasimene in June 1944 (and beyond in July) seem often to be "overlooked"..and of course, there are some opportunities missed.

    By the way, that link doesn't seem to work...perhaps it's my browser choice.

    best
    Try Uguccione Ranieri di Sorbello Foundation - Catalogue, Museum, Archives, Library, click on the Union Flag to obtain the English version of the website, click on Publications and then scroll down through the books.
     
  19. minden1759

    minden1759 Senior Member

    Tragically, most books focus on the teeth arms - infantry and armour and support arms - artillery, signals and intelligence, rather than the service support troops - logistics and medical. Given that the majority of troops were in the service support, this is really frustrating.

    However, all is not lost. Get Drew to copy the 11 Fd Amb War Diaries on one of his trips to the National Archives and you will find a veritable treasure trove of information.

    Regards

    FdeP
     
  20. Alan Allport

    Alan Allport Senior Member

    I have now obtained copies of the two books about the 78th Division - "Algiers to Austria" by Cyril Ray and "Battleaxe Division" by Ken Ford. I admit I have not read them thoroughly yet but after a "speed read" I was disappointed to see that there appears to be very little information about the activities of any of the three Field Ambulance units (11th, 152nd and 217th) during the campaigns in North Africa and Italy.

    The United Kingdom Official History series dealt with medical services pretty exhaustively. You may want to take a look at

    The Army Medical Services, Campaigns, Volume 2: Hong Kong, Malaya, Iceland and the Faroes, Libya, 1942-43, North-West Africa, Crew, Francis A. E. London: HMSO, 1957; and

    The Army Medical Services, Campaigns, Volume 3: Sicily, Italy, Greece (1944-45), Crew, Francis A. E. London: HMSO, 1959

    Your local library system may be able to obtain these by ILL.

    Best, Alan
     

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