1st Australian Machine Gun Battalion. The 2/3rd left the village of Fih and moved to a camp at Hill 69, in Palestine, on 14 January 1942. The battalion's final action of the war came on 7 August when a patrol killed four Japanese. We virtually had two wars (Nth Africa and the Pacific) and we had two armies, the AIF and the CMF. [28] Due to the presence of a large amount of equipment on the wharf, which had been intended to be sent to Singapore before its fall, Blackforce was able to re-equip itself handsomely with vehicles including carriers and armoured cars, Bren guns, Thompson sub-machine guns and mortars; but there were no machine guns. Legacy. In November 1919, following the end of the First World War, the war-raised battalions of the Northumberland Fusiliers were disbanded. They endured a bitter cold, and snowy, winter at Fih near Tripoli, which was punctuated by leave drafts to Tel Aviv. Two of these wounded were later smuggled out of the Indies by medical personnel back to Australia, with one rejoining the battalion there later in the year. Please note that we are taking some time off over Christmas and New Year from 19th December, 2020 to 3rd January, 2021. Ultimately, this never eventuated and Blackforce was ordered to surrender on 9 March 1942 following the Dutch capitulation the day before. Faced with a threat closer to home, the Australian government pressed for the return of its troops from the Middle East, and so in early 1942 the 7th Division began withdrawing from their garrison posts in Syria and Lebanon. On 15 April 1942, the order was passed to re-form the battalion, under Lieutenant Colonel Sidney Reed, the battalion's original second-in-command. While the 3rd Machine Gun Battalion didn't come into being until March 1918, its resources were previously known as the 9th, 10th, 11th and 23rd Machine Gun Companies. In the ensuing chaos, Dutch engineers blew up the bridge at the Tjianten River. [4][5], Assigned at divisional level, the role of the machine gun battalion was to provide direct fire support in addition to the machine guns that were organic to infantry battalions. [3] A period of leave followed, after which personnel concentrated at Wallgrove. In Blackburn's stead, the 'D' Company commander, Major Edward Lyneham, was promoted to take over command of the battalion. [lower-alpha 3] On 7 February 1920, following the establishment of the Territorial Army (T.A. The battalion was disbanded in January 1946. Formed in February 1918 by merging the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 21st Australian Machine Gun Companies. From there, the battalion travelled overland to Sydney where they embarked upon the SS Ile de France from Pyrmont Wharf, bound for the Middle East, as part of a large convoy of troopships. Each Infantry Brigade had a Machine Gun Company under command. Therefore, most of Australian weapons and equipment during war was imported from either Britain or USA, although many were replaced with locally produced versions later in war. These tasks were to be achieved without large-scale offensive action, due to contingency plans for the division to be re-deployed to the Philippines; in the event this did not occur and the 6th Division remained in Aitape–Wewak for the remainder of the war. After this, Blackforce began moving towards Soekaboemi on 5 March, as part of efforts to reach Tjilatjap on the southern coast of the island to secure passage back to Australia. As the situation in the Pacific worsened for the Allies – Singapore had fallen in early February and the Japanese were steadily advancing through the Netherlands East Indies – the Allies made the decision to hastily make a stand. The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion[Note 1] was one of four machine gun battalions that were raised as part of the all-volunteer Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF) for service overseas during World War II. There, fresh orders reached them. [22], In late 1941, the Japanese entered the war, attacking Pearl Harbor and launching an invasion of Malaya. Based around the Deception Bay area, north of Brisbane, a company was deployed to Moreton Island and another to Bribie Island. The Owen gun, which was known officially as the Owen machine carbine, was an Australian submachine gun designed by Evelyn Owen in 1939. [31], Following the Battle of the Java Sea, the Japanese were able to land a force around Banten Bay and Marek, on the western tip of Java, and subsequently began advancing east towards Batavia and Buitenzorg, forcing Blackforce to reorientate itself east of the Tjianten River, to make a stand south of Buitenzorg. [2] Motorised infantry units, equipped with wheeled motor vehicles, motorcycles and sometimes tracked carriers,[3] the machine gun battalions were formed to provide a greater level of support by fire than that which was organically available within ordinary infantry battalions. After completing training in Australia, in April 1941 the battalion embarked for the Middle East. [42] A long period of relative inactivity subsequently followed as a result of inter-Allied service politics which saw the US Army assume primacy of operations in the Pacific, and indecision about the future role of Australian forces in the Pacific campaign. [27], Blackburn established his force into a brigade formation, utilising the pioneers and machine gunners as infantry battalions, and forming a third infantry battalion from troops that were assigned to garrison the base, as well as logistics and administrative personnel, and members of the AIF who had been able to get out of Singapore before it fell. [54], In late August, following the conclusion of hostilities the 2/3rd was concentrated at Wewak Point, in the 19th Brigade's area, where final parades were held and education classes commenced to prepare the soldiers for discharge and return to civilian life. Gordon later reached the rank of major general. Later, they moved to Semina where they established a camp until shipping became available for the return to Australia. [61], A Vickers machine gun team from the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion in Syria, October 1941, Infantry formations of the Second Australian Imperial Force, Fighting against the Vichy French: Palestine and Syria, Into action against the Japanese: Java and captivity, Re-organisation and garrison duties in Australia, The numerical designation of 2nd AIF units was prefixed by "2/", which was used to set them apart from Militia units or units of the, Commander of the Order of the British Empire, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2/3rd_Machine_Gun_Battalion_(Australia)&oldid=1000175228, Military units and formations established in 1940, Military units and formations disestablished in 1946, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. [25] However, shortly after their arrival, they were ordered to re-embark on the tanker, which eventually caught up with Orcades and transferred its personnel for the remainder of the journey to Batavia. In June/July 1941 it saw action against Vichy Fre… After the war, the machine gun battalion concept was discontinued in the Australian Army and in the 1920s medium machine gun platoons were added to standard infantry battalions. [35], While the troops who had boarded the Orcades went into captivity on Java, the five officers and 257 other ranks that had been transported on the eight smaller ships returned to Australia in the last week of March 1942. 21st Australian Machine Gun Company. Relieving the 7th Machine Gun Battalion,[13] the battalion was attached to the 3rd Division and undertook defensive duties in Port Moresby, mainly located at Ward's Airfield, starting in July. 29 Officers, 1007 Other Ranks. [9] The battalion was sent to Dapto, on the New South Wales coast, in October 1942, to carry out defensive duties. A small number of the battalion's personnel returned to Australia and it was subsequently re-raised in mid-1942. Meanwhile, following the conclusion of hostilities, the battalion's personnel were slowly transferred to other units or repatriated back to Australia for demobilisation. [5], Developed by the British Army, the concept within the Australian Army had its genesis during the Gallipoli Campaign in 1915, when the machine guns assigned to the infantry battalions – initially two and then, later, four – had been grouped together and co-ordinated at brigade level to help compensate for the lack of artillery support. [2] The relevant companies came from several units assigned to the 1st Division,[3] specifically: the 1st, 13th, 17th, 18th, 20th/19th, and 34th Infantry Battalions. [17], In the end, this did not eventuate, as the 7th Division was committed to the Syria–Lebanon campaign in early June, to secure the Allied eastern flank from attack. In early 1944, the battalion returned to Australia and over the course of the year was disbanded, with its personnel being sent to other units as reinforcements. Lieutenant Colonel Sidney Reed (1942–1944), This page was last edited on 13 January 2021, at 23:35. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Blackburn when it was raised, the battalion was primarily a South Australian unit, although it had sub-units formed in Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia. The battalion defended a position north-east of Beirut, around Bikfaya, initially but was moved around to various locations including Aleppo, on the Turkish border, throughout the remainder of 1941. It also finally began to receive its vehicles and heavy equipment, including its Vickers machine guns as preparations were made for the battalion to join the fighting in the Western Desert. When World War II broke out, the decision was made to raise several machine gun battalions within the 2nd AIF, allocated at a rate of one per division. [13][14] Within the machine gun companies there were three platoons; these were numbered sequentially starting from 1 to 3 in Headquarters Company through to 13 to 15 in 'D' Company. The 6th Division was subsequently assigned to take over from the US XI Corps around Aitape–Wewak. [24] Missing many of their weapons, the troops were re-equipped with rifles from the Orcades's armoury. Formed in late 1942 from the machine gun companies of several infantry battalions, the 6th Machine Gun Battalion undertook training on the New South Wales south coast before being deployed to New Guinea where they took part in the Markham and Ramu Valley – Finisterre Range campaign, defending the airfield at Gusap, and undertaking patrols. Anumb River, But–Dagua, Damour, Jebel Mazar, Jezzine, Nambut Ridge, Sidon, and Syria 1941. The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 as part of the 7th Division and served in Egypt, Syria, the Netherlands East Indies and New Guinea during World War II. Many of these personnel then saw combat in Borneo in 1945. These ships were to follow the Orcades up at its eventual destination, which was at the time, still being kept secret even to the troops on board. Members of the 2/3rd battalion were captured by the Japanese in Java in 1942. Using men from six 'E' (Vicker machine gun) companies from different infantry battalions, the newly-formed unit went on to serve in the defence of Port Moresby, Battle of Wau and at Milne Bay. After completing training in Australia, in April 1941 the battalion embarked for the Middle East. While its personal were transferred to the Regular Army 1st Battalion on 12 July 1919 disembodied on 29 July, it was not formally disbanded until April 1953. Other reasons identified for the concept's limited use include distrust of overhead fire by some commanders, a preference for organic fire support over attached sub-units, over-estimating the difficulty of transporting Vickers guns in the jungle, and a tendency to ignore targets that could not be seen. They were transported overland from Colac in early January 1942 to Winnellie. The first Turkish reinforcements to reach the battlefield were Sefik Aker’s reserve battalions and machine-gun company. Their movements and … For the next couple of days, the battalion fought several skirmishes with 'C' Company bearing the brunt of the Japanese attacks, suffering seven killed and 28 wounded, while inflicting about 200 casualties on the Japanese. Home / Australia / Army / Patches / Colour Patches (World War 2) / Colour Patches - WW2 (Full Size) (Machine Gun and Pioneer Battalions) Please note that we are taking some time off over Christmas and New Year from 19th December, 2020 to 10th January, 2021. 2/3rd Australian Machine-Gun Regiment (Victoria) 2/4th Australian Pioneer Battalion; 9th Australian Divisional Cavalry - From 8th Infantry Division in May 1941; 2/3rd Field Company, RAE - Tasmania/Western Australia/South Australia - From 6th Infantry Division; 2/13th Field Company, RAE - Queensland - Ex 2/1st Field Park Company The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 as part of the 7th Division and served in Egypt, Syria, the Netherlands East Indies and New Guinea during World War Two. This war book is a Battalion History of the 2AIF 2 Machine Gun Company. The battalion was transferred to the "tropical war establishment" during this period as part of an Army-wide reorganisation intended to optimise units for jungle warfare. While at Shellharbour, on 16 May 1943, the battalion took part in rescuing the crew of a US tanker, the Cities Service Boston, which sunk near Bass Point after running aground. These companies were supported by assorted service support soldiers including signallers, stretcher bearers, administration clerks, caterers and quartermasters. Most of its personnel volunteered to serve overseas with the Second Australian Imperial Force and later served in Borneo in 1945 with several other infantry, pioneer and machine gun battalions,[2] including the 2/24th Infantry Battalion, with which they saw further action on Tarakan. Designated a South Australian battalion, its personnel were nevertheless recruited from several Australian states: South Australians predominated, but there were also men from Victoria, Tasmania, and Western Australia, with many of the battalion's cadre staff of officers and senior non commissioned officers having served previously in the Militia with various light horse regiments and infantry battalions. The Battalions took the number of their Division. [44] As a result of this change, the battalion was required to return all of its vehicles, with the intention that its guns would largely be carried across the battlefield by soldiers moving on foot. Although raised in South Australia, B Company came from Victoria, C Company came from Tasmania and D Company came from Western Australia. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Blackburn when it was raised, the battalion was primarily a South Australian unit, although it had sub-units formed in Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia. [43] During this time, the battalion was based around Wondecla, south-west of Cairns. [7] The battalion's commanding officer on establishment was Lieutenant Colonel Anthony Hearne. Following Japan's entry into the war, the decision was made to transfer a large number of Australian troops from the Middle East to the Pacific region. They remained there until 31 January when they boarded a train which took them to Kantara where they were ferried across the canal to continue the journey to Port Tewfik where the majority of the battalion, totalling 636 personnel of all ranks, boarded the troopship Orcades. The 19 Machine Gun Battalion was raised as a Militia Unit in the Wimmera District of Victoria during 1940. The convoy reached Gourock in Scotland in mid-June. The battalion subsequently returned in two contingents, both aboard the Katoomba. [58] Once the focus of Australian Army combat operations shifted to the Pacific, the machine gun battalions were largely misused, being employed in a static defensive capacity against short and medium range targets, or for menial tasks, rather than as offensive fire support weapons that could have been employed to provide long range fire support. They were designated with the same number as the parent Brigade. In early 1942, as the Japanese advanced through the Netherlands East Indies, the majority of the battalion was captured during the Battle of Java. Forced to endure brutal conditions, over worked in labour camps, and inadequately provided for, casualties amongst these men were high. For the next three years they were used for labour, most of them working on the infamous Thai-Burma Railway or … They were later commemorated in a memorial that was established in 1968 near the wreck site, and were also decorated posthumously by the United States for their efforts. [7] During the war the battalion lost 202 men killed or died on active service, of which 56 were killed in action, 139 died while prisoners of war and seven in accidents or illness on active service. Arriving at Port Adelaide, the battalion's vehicles, weapons and heavy equipment was moved to Morphettville Racecourse and the remaining personnel concentrated at Sandy Creek. In May 1940 the 2/1st sailed with the 18th Brigade to the Middle East but the convoy was diverted to Britain to help bolster defences. When the units had been established, the intent had been that the machine gun battalions would provide highly mobile fire support;[57] however, this was largely only applicable in theatres where principles of open warfare could be applied. Not so in WW2. [23], The Orcades, a fast transport capable of 26 knots, set sail for Colombo before even the battalion's baggage could be brought on board. [16] The main element arrived in Townsville in March, but one company was sent to Sydney. 6 MACHINE GUN BATTALION, 2AIF IN AUSTRALIA DURING WW2 . It was structured along the same lines as the other 2nd AIF machine gun battalions, which consisted of between 800 and 900 personnel organised into a headquarters element consisting of three platoons – signals, anti-aircraft and administration[12] – and four machine gun companies, each equipped with 12 Vickers machine guns, to make a total of 48 across the entire battalion. 1st Australian Divisional Train. In addition, one member was appointed as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire and four were appointed as Members of the Order of the British Empire. An armoured car regiment was formed in 1933 based on the 19th Light Horse Regiment. [8] In common with the other Australian machine gun battalions, the colours chosen for the battalion's unit colour patch (UCP) were black and gold. The units aboard the Orcades (the 2/2nd Pioneers, an engineer field company, an anti-aircraft regiment as well as transport and medical personnel) were ordered to form an ad hoc force along with a squadron from the British 3rd The King's Own Hussars and an artillery battery from the US 131st Field Artillery Regiment. Machine Gun Battalions were formed in the Divisions in the early months of 1918, by bringing together the four MGC Companies into a single command structure. [48] The campaign that followed was, in the words of author Eustace Keogh, essentially a "mopping up campaign", with the division being tasked with security of the airstrip and base area, and ensuring that contact was maintained with Japanese forces in the area. Upon formation, the battalion was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Blackburn,[7] a World War I veteran who had received the Victoria Cross for actions at Pozieres. Each of the four divisions in the Sec… 2/3rd Australian Machine Gun Battalion Formed on 17th June 1940 at Wayville S.A. under the command of Lt. Col. A. S. Blackburn V.C. On 8 February 1942, the ship reached its intermediate destination from where it was escorted by the cruiser HMS Dorsetshire. Lyneham and Gordon had both served in the Militia before the war, with Lyneham serving in the 28th Battalion, The Swan Regiment in Western Australia and Gordon in the 6th Battalion, Royal Melbourne Regiment. [7] The battalion later moved into the Mandi and Brandi areas where they were tasked with re-invigorating the Australian operations in the area, as Japanese resistance around the plantations increased. The single exception was the 3rd (Special Reserve) Battalion. [18][19] For the 2/3rd, the campaign saw them heavily involved throughout the short, but sharply contested campaign, with each of the four machine gun companies supporting separate efforts by elements of the 7th Division and also British troops, seeing action around Merdajayoun, Metula, Quneitra, Sidon and Damour before the Vichy French requested an armistice in mid-July. There the battalion undertook a vigorous physical training regime to regain the fitness lost from the sea voyage. ), the 1st Line Territorial Force battalions of the regiment wer… [47] Instead, the Australian troops were tasked with relieving the US forces around New Guinea, so that they could be redistributed in the Pacific. [10] The Tasmanians and Western Australians had initially been intended to join the 2/2nd Machine Gun Battalion, and during its formative period, the companies completed basic training in their home locations, before concentrating together at Warradale, South Australia with the Tasmanians sailing to Melbourne to link up with Victorians prior to entraining for the journey west, while the Western Australians crossed the Nullarbor Plain. [7][20] The 2/3rd's casualties during the campaign amounted to one officer and 41 other ranks killed or wounded. 2/2 Australian Machine Gun Battalion history written by a Veteran. [3], The battalion was relieved around Gusap in March 1944, and returned to Dobodura by air. By December, the unit ceased to exist. Furthermore, it was only partially independent from the United Kingdom (Britain). [26] This force, under Blackburn who was promoted to brigadier, came to be known as "Blackforce",[7] with headquarters being established at Batavia. [59] For the 2/3rd, the Syrian campaign was the only one of its three campaigns where it was employed wholly as a machine gun unit in support of the infantry; on Java and in Aitape–Wewak, it was utilised as infantry. [34] They would subsequently endure three-and-a-half years in captivity as Japanese prisoners of war, being sent to camps across south-east Asia, including the infamous Thai–Burma Railway. In mid-July, the 2/3rd received orders to move north to Cowra by road. [9], Initially, the battalion was stretched across several locations, with companies being formed in Seymour, Victoria, Brighton, Tasmania, and Northam, Western Australia. In early December 1945, the 2/3rd's remaining personnel returned to Australia aboard the British aircraft carrier HMS Implacable, arriving in Sydney,[55] and the following month, in January 1946, after final clearances had been obtained the unit was disbanded. At the beginning of the Second World War, Australia did not have an extensive manufacturing industry. Merged into 1st Australian MG Battalion February 1918. [3], Markham and Ramu Valley – Finisterre Range campaign, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=6th_Machine_Gun_Battalion_(Australia)&oldid=1000612482, Military units and formations established in 1942, Military units and formations disestablished in 1944, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 15 January 2021, at 22:01. [39], While 'B' Company was deployed to Merauke, the remainder of the battalion moved to the Atherton Tablelands in mid-August 1943, at which time the battalion was transferred to the command of the 6th Division,[40] assigned as a corps unit rather than a direct command unit. When they returned from New Guinea they were again based at Wallgrove Army Camp from 12 June 1944 till their disbandment on 1 December 1944.. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS By late July, the majority of the battalion moved to Wewak Point, while two companies remained in the vicinity of Mandi–Bandi; operations in the area had killed 59 Japanese, for the loss of four men from 2/3rd killed in action and eight wounded. [4] The battalion was highly mobile and included many different types of vehicles. In this case, into Battalions of four Machine Gun Companies, attached to each Division, again with the same numeric designation; in this case the 3 rd Division. As with the rest of the Australian Army, the outbreak of war in 1939 lead to a dramatic expansion of Australia's armoured force. The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Arthur Blackburn, VC. These came into action against the advanced Australian parties on Third Ridge, not at the landing; and the action took place at around 8.30 am, some four hours after the initial landing. The Owen was the only entirely Australian-designed and constructed service submachine gun of World War II and was used by the Australian Army from 1943 until the mid-1960s. The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion was formed in June 1940 as part of the 7th Division and served in Egypt, Syria, the Netherlands East Indies and New Guinea during World War II. In June/July 1941 it saw action against Vichy French forces during the Syria–Lebanon campaign, during which time the battalion was heavily involved in supporting various elements of the 7th Division. Those who had survived the fighting spent the rest of the war as prisoners. Men who were in the hospital or on course were subsequently reposted to the 2/2nd Machine Gun Battalion, and remained in the Middle East, later seeing action at El Alamein. The move was carried out on foot over several days. Charlie left us with a substantial collection of diaries, maps and logs of his days under the Japanese. [60], The 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion received the following battle honours:[7], The following officers commanded the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion during the war:[7][61], Of these, both Blackburn and Reed were World War I veterans who had later served in the Militia in the 18th Light Horse Regiment, in South Australia, during the inter-war years. [29] Concentrating around the civilian airport at Kemajoian, the battalion formed part of Blackforce's defensive garrison, tasked with protecting Batavia's five airfields from Japanese paratroopers; 'B' Company was detached in this time to defend the Buitenzorg military airfield. Its role during this period was to defend Gusap Airfield,[15] amidst heavy fighting around Shaggy Ridge. 8Th April 1941 for the Middle East worked in labour camps, and returned to Australia and it was by! Various descriptions and 50 motorcycles ] on 7 February 1920, following the of... 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