Royal Artillery - making sense of unit, battery and location

Hello
I have received a copy of a relatives service record - Albert Harding 1433809. I would really like to map his movements/geographical location during this time period. Can I do this from the information shown below, and if so please could you advise on where best to look?
The record reads across the lines:
125/40 41/15th LAA posted to 73/23rd LAA Regt. W/Bdr 18/9/40
206/40 73/23 LAA from 15th LAA " 18/9/40
259/40 /9AA Res.Rgt. posted " 15/11/40
62/41 37 LAA Regt Bdr 19/4/41
39/41 212/72 LAA Rgt Bdr 14/5/41
78/41 Y list 7/10/41

Apologies if my terminology is off, as I'm new to this
Thankyou
Marg

 

A warm welcome to you Marg.

It may be helpful if you could possibly post images of Albert’s record, especially the B103 (here is my own grandfather’s as an example):



Fellow member Derek’s (Derek Barton) excellent site may also be of help to you, as I’m assuming the following from what you’ve posted. His various postings listed below:

41 Battery of the 15th Light Anti-Aircraft (LAA) Regt:

15 (Isle of Man) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) - The Royal Artillery 1939-45

Manx Regiment - Wikipedia

War Diaries of 15th Isle of Man Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Royal Artillery 1939 to 1945


Then posted to 73 Battery of the 23rd LAA Regt:

23 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) - The Royal Artillery 1939-45


37 LAA Regt:

37 (Tyne Electrical Engineers) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) - The Royal Artillery 1939-45

37th (Tyne Electrical Engineers) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery - Wikipedia


212 Battery of 72 LAA Regt:

72 Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (TA) - The Royal Artillery 1939-45


The one I’m not 100% sure about is the “9AA Res.Rgt”. It could, perhaps, be this one, as SR is “Special Reserve”?:

9 (Londonderry) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment RA (SR) - The Royal Artillery 1939-45

9th (Londonderry) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery.

I’m sure someone much more knowledgeable will be along to clarify exactly what 9AA Res.Rgt was).

I’m guessing Bdr was his rank, Bombardier.

With regard to the Y List, you may find these threads of help:

Info on Y List please!

Posted to "Y" List

Help Deciphering Service Record

Does his record indicate any illness, wounding etc in 1941?

 

Hi Martin
Thankyou for your welcome and reply. I have attached some images - hope they are the right pages?
Happy to post more if needed, although some pages relate to WW1 service in the South Wales Borderers.
Thank you
Marg

 

For some obscure reason Northern Ireland had a Supplementary Reserve (SR):

From: 9th (Londonderry) Heavy Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery

 

Hi Martin re: the Y list on his service record , I just checked and he was hospitalised and operated on in 1941 for hallux valgus (bunions). So that helps explain that bit. He was discharged in 1942 (aged 48), and the pensions page lists this as a disability.

 

Ah, that definitely explains that one then.

 

The home address there explains the Manx connection, of course, I wondered about that - clearly he joined the newly formed 15th LAA Regt, a Territorial Army unit, three months after it was formed in 1938.

I don’t think he ever went overseas in WW2, Marg, which could possibly be down to his age at the time. I’m guessing, therefore, that his medals would possibly be the 1939-45 Star, War Medal and, possibly, the Defence Medal, but it should have that recorded somewhere on the records you have.

He did go overseas in WW1, as you doubtless already know, his medal card proves that and he was entitled to the Trio of 1914/15 Star, British War Medal and Victory Medal:

(image from The National Archives)

 

The record says he enlisted for home service. Interestingly he enlisted at the same time as his two sons. One was killed at El Alamein in 1942 (Philip Albert Harding) and the other (John Sydney Harding) was a POW in Stalag IV F Hartmannsdorf/Chemnitz.

I'm still trying to work out for Albert Harding, where he was whilst in the 9th Reserve AA Regt RA between November 1940 and April 1941. Davidbfpo suggested in an earlier post that this could have been the 9th Londonderry Heavy AA Regiment RA, but I am wondering if going to Northern Ireland would still have been classed as home service?
I also found this reference on wiki, and wondered if this could be what is referred to in his service record?
9th Anti-Aircraft Division (United Kingdom) - Wikipedia

 

MarMkly,

He would have gone where the Army decided to post him. With due allowance for his age and previous wartime service.

'Home Service' meant no service abroad and Northern Ireland was classed as not being abroad.

His posting to 9AA Res.Rgt. cannot be confused with the 9 AA Division, even if it was defending South Wales and he had in WW1 been posted to the South Wales Borderers.

 

His WW2 medal card.

 

Thankyou davidbfpo
This is really helpful information. If he had leave, his journey home to the Isle of Man wouldn't have been far either
Thanks again
Marg

 

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2094434/phillip-albert-harding/

 

(Images by kind permission of The War Graves Photographic Project)