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The 147th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (147 RAC) was an armoured regiment of the Royal Armoured Corps raised by the British Army in the Second World War. The regiment was created by the conversion of the 10th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment. The regiment served in North-west Europe from June 1944 to May 1945.
The regiment was formed by converting the 10th Battalion, Hampshire Regiment, a war service battalion raised in July 1940 serving with the 201st Independent Infantry Brigade (Home), along with the 9th Hampshires. The regiment was commanded by Lt. Col. A.R.W.S. Koe. In common with all other infantry battalions that were transferred to the Royal Armoured Corps, the personnel would have still continued to wear their Hampshire Regiment cap badges on the black beret of the Royal Armoured Corps. The regiment named their tanks after famous past battles fought by the Hampshire Regiment, the CO's tank being named "Minden".
The regiment, equipped with Churchill tanks, was assigned to the 34th Army Tank Brigade (34th Tank Brigade from June 1942) in December 1941. Serving alongside 147 RAC was the North Irish Horse and 153 RAC. In June 1942, the brigade became part of the 1st Mixed Division as part of an experiment with 'Mixed Divisions', of one armoured and two infantry brigades. In September, it was transferred to the 43rd Mixed Infantry Division, training in infantry-tank co-operation. However, in September 1943, the brigade became an independent brigade after the experiment with 'Mixed Divisions' was abandoned.
In late June 1944, 147 RAC was sent, with the rest of the brigade, overseas to France as part of the invasion of Normandy and fought in the Normandy Campaign in particular during Operation Greenline, part of the Second Battle of the Odon launched in mid-July. During the battle, 147 RAC suffered 47 casualties between 15–18 July. The regiment continued to serve with the brigade in Normandy until the breakout and later in the Siege of Le Havre (Operation Astonia), the Battle of the Reichswald (Operation Veritable, where the regiment suffered very heavy casualties and could only muster two weak squadrons) in February 1945, and the crossing of the River Rhine (Operation Plunder), when the Allies invaded Germany in March 1945. After Victory in Europe Day, on 8 May 1945, the regiment and brigade began preparing for service in the South-East Asian theatre. These preparations were halted as a result of the Japanese surrender.
The 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that fought in both the First and Second World Wars. Originally raised in 1908 as the Welsh Division, part of the Territorial Force (TF), the division saw service in First World War, being designated 53rd (Welsh) Division in mid-1915, and fought in the Gallipoli Campaign and in the Middle East. Remaining active in the Territorial Army (TA) during the interwar period as a peacetime formation, the division again saw action in Second World War, fighting in North-western Europe from June 1944 until May 1945.
The 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the Canadian Army that saw active service during World War II. The brigade was composed of the 6th, 10th and 27th Canadian Armoured regiments and saw service in northwest Europe, landing in Normandy on D-Day and remaining in combat up to Victory in Europe Day.
The 49th Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army. The division fought in the First World War in the trenches of the Western Front, in the fields of France and Flanders. During the Second World War, the division fought in the Norwegian Campaign and in North-western Europe. After the Second World War, it was disbanded in 1946, then reformed in 1947. It remained with Northern Command until finally disbanded in 1967.
XXX Corps was a corps of the British Army during the Second World War. The corps was formed in the Western Desert in September 1941. It provided extensive service in the North African Campaign and many of its units were in action at the Second Battle of El Alamein in late 1942. It then took part in the Tunisia Campaign and formed the left flank during the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943.
The 4th Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army. The division was first created as a formation of the Canadian Corps during the First World War. During the Second World War the division was reactivated as the 4th Canadian Infantry Division in 1941 and then converted to armour and redesignated as the 4th Canadian (Armoured) Division. Beginning in 1916 the division adopted a distinctive green-coloured formation patch as its insignia. In 2013 it was announced that Land Force Central Area would be redesignated 4th Canadian Division. It is currently responsible for Canadian Army operations in the Canadian province of Ontario and is headquartered at Denison Armoury in Toronto.
The 11th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army which was created in March 1941 during the Second World War. The division was formed in response to the unanticipated success of the German panzer divisions. The 11th Armoured was responsible for several major victories in the Battle of Normandy from in the summer of 1944, shortly after the Normandy landings, and it participated in the Allied advance from Paris to the Rhine, the Rhine crossing in March 1945. It was disbanded in January 1946 and reformed towards the end of 1950. In 1956, it was converted into the 4th Infantry Division.
The 43rd (Wessex) Infantry Division was an infantry division of Britain's Territorial Army (TA). The division was first formed in 1908, as the Wessex Division. During the First World War, it was broken-up and never served as a complete formation. It was reformed in the TA in 1920, and then served in the campaign in North West Europe from June 1944 until May 1945, during the Second World War. The division suffered heavy casualties and gained an excellent reputation. After the Second World War, the division formed part of the postwar TA, and became the 43rd (Wessex) Division/District in 1961. It was finally disbanded in 1967.
The Hampshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, created as part of the Childers Reforms in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 37th Regiment of Foot and the 67th Regiment of Foot. The regiment existed continuously for 111 years and served in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. An Army Order of the 28 November 1946 stated, due to distinguished service in the Second World War, the regiment would be re-titled as the Royal Hampshire Regiment.
The 8th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army formed in August 1941, during the Second World War and active until 1956. The brigade was formed by the renaming of 6th Cavalry Brigade, when the 1st Cavalry Division based in Palestine converted from a motorised formation to an armoured unit, becoming 10th Armoured Division.
The 44th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars, and served with the 15th (Scottish) Infantry Division.
227th Brigade was an infantry formation of the British Army formed for Home Service under various short-lived titles in the First and the Second World Wars. Later it was upgraded to a field formation composed of Scottish troops, and saw heavy fighting in the Normandy and North West Europe Campaign.
The 214th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army raised during the Second World War that saw active service on the North West Europe.
The Second Battle of the Odon comprised operations fought by the British Second Army during the Second World War. Attacks took place in mid-July 1944 against Panzergruppe West, as part of the Battle of Normandy. Operations Greenline and Pomegranate were intended to draw German attention away from Operation Goodwood, an attack from the Orne bridgehead on 18 July.
The 144th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was an armoured regiment of the British Army. Originally raised during World War II as a battalion of the East Lancashire Regiment it was later transferred to the Royal Armoured Corps. It fought in the campaign in North-West Europe, from June 1944 to May 1945.
The 148th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was an armoured regiment of the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps during World War II. It fought in the invasion of Normandy in 1944.
The 107th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was a tank regiment of the Royal Armoured Corps, raised by the British Army during the Second World War. The regiment served with distinction in North-west Europe from July 1944 to May 1945.
The 153rd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was an armoured regiment of the Royal Armoured Corps, part of the British Army, and was raised during the Second World War. The regiment saw brief but intense action in the invasion of Normandy before being broken up to provide replacements to other units.
The 34th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army that saw active service in the Second World War. It was formed in 1941 as the 34th Army Tank Brigade and subsequently redesignated as the 34th Tank Brigade in February 1945 and became part of the 79th Armoured Division. It was equipped with Churchill tanks and provided close support for assaults by the infantry. During the fighting in North-west Europe from July 1944 to May 1945 the brigade served with both the First Canadian Army and the British Second Army. The brigade was disbanded in early 1946.
The 142nd (Suffolk) Regiment Royal Armoured Corps was an armoured regiment of the British Army's Royal Armoured Corps that was raised in World War II and saw active service. The regiment served in the final stages of the North African Campaign at Tunisia and later served during the Italian Campaign from 1943 until early 1945 when it was disbanded.
The 31st Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade formation of the British Army, created during the Second World War.
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