The Royal Australian Armoured Corps (RAAC) is a corps of the Australian Army which provides the Australian Defence Force's armour capability. Armour combines firepower, mobility, protection and networked situational awareness to generate shock action and overmatch in close combat. Armour is an essential element of the combined arms approach that is employed by the Australian Army.
The 4th/19th Prince of Wales's Light Horse is a cavalry regiment of the Australian Army. The regiment in its current composition was formed in 1948 when the Citizens Military Force (CMF) was re-raised after the completion of the demobilisation process following the end of the Second World War and it was formed through the amalgamation of three previously existing regiments. Through these predecessor units, 4/19 PWLH can trace its lineage back to the 19th century and today it is the custodian of the battle honours earned by these units. The regiment had a Regular squadron, 1 Troop 4th/19th Prince of Wales Light Horse Regiment, which was posted to South Vietnam in 1965 where it was attached to 1 RAR operating out of Bien Hoa Province. It returned to Australia on 28 May 1966 and became part of the Regular cavalry units that continue to exist in the Australian Army today. These units subsequently served during the Vietnam War and many of their personnel continued to wear regimental accoutrements while in South Vietnam.
Armoured units made a relatively small, but important, contribution to Australia’s war effort during World War II. While Australia formed three armoured divisions and two independent armoured brigades during the war, Australian armoured units only saw action as independent regiments and companies supporting larger infantry formations. Early actions were fought in the Middle East by the divisional carrier regiments that supported the 6th, 7th and 9th Divisions, fighting in Libya, Egypt and Syria in 1941–42, before the Australian divisions returned to Australia in 1942–43. During the early fighting in the Pacific, there was a limited role for armoured formations, although one armoured regiment – the 2/6th – took part in the fighting around Buna–Gona in late 1942. Later in the war, though, during the Huon Peninsula, Bougainville and Borneo campaigns of 1943–45, several armoured units were used by Australian forces in the infantry support role.
The 1st Royal New South Wales Lancers was an Australian Army light cavalry (reconnaissance) regiment. Its complicated lineage includes the New South Wales Lancers which were first formed as a colonial unit in 1885 as the New South Wales Cavalry, and subsequently saw action in the Second Boer War, and later during First World War at Gallipoli and Palestine as the 1st Light Horse Regiment. The unit subsequently served during the Second World War as the 1st Armoured Regiment equipped with Matilda tanks, fighting the Japanese in New Guinea and Borneo.
The 12th/16th Hunter River Lancers is an Australian Army Reserve cavalry regiment. It was formed on 1 May 1948, although it draws its lineage from units that were originally formed in the 1880s. It is currently a Light Cavalry unit equipped with Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicles. The regiment forms part of the 11th Brigade, attached to the 2nd Division and draws its members from regional centres in northern New South Wales, hence the reference to the Hunter River. Since 2000 the regiment has provided individuals as reinforcements to round-out Regular Army units deploying overseas on peacekeeping operations and in the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The 6th Cavalry Brigade was a militia or Citizens Military Force (CMF) formation of the Australian Army based in South Australia. It originated from the 6th Light Horse Brigade and was later converted to the 6th Motor Brigade and eventually to the 6th Armoured Brigade. During World War II, the brigade undertook defensive garrison duties until its conversion to the armoured role in 1942. It did not see combat.
The 1st Armoured Brigade was a formation of the Australian Army during World War II. The brigade was formed in July 1941, at Greta, New South Wales from volunteers for the Second Australian Imperial Force and was assigned to the 1st Armoured Division. Raised initially for service in the Middle East, following Japan's entry into the war, the brigade was assigned to the defence of Australia in case of an invasion. After garrison duties in New South Wales and Western Australia, it was disbanded in November 1944 without seeing active service, although some of its former units saw action later with other formations.
The 2nd Armoured Brigade was a formation of the Australian Army during World War II. The brigade was formed in July 1941, at Puckapunyal, Victoria, from Second Australian Imperial Force volunteers. It was assigned to the 1st Armoured Division in July 1941, with the intention of deploying it to the Middle East. However, it was reassigned to home defence following Japan's entry into the war, and was then transferred to the 3rd Armoured Division in October 1942. The brigade remained in Australia, undertaking defensive duties in Victoria and Queensland before being disbanded in January 1944. While it did not see any active service as a formation, some of its constituent units eventually took part in the campaigns on Tarakan, Labuan, Bougainville and around Aitape–Wewak in 1944–1945 after transferring to other brigades.
The 6th Australian Armoured Brigade was a formation of the Australian Army during World War II. The brigade was formed in May 1942, by the conversion of the 6th Motor Brigade and was assigned to the 2nd Motor Division. The brigade also absorbed units of the 5th Motor Brigade in June 1942. The brigade remained in Australia and did not see any active service before it was converted into the 4th Armoured Brigade in March 1943.
The 3rd Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in September 1914, and by December as part of the 1st Light Horse Brigade had moved overseas. The regiment only fought against the forces of the Ottoman Empire, in Egypt, at Gallipoli, on the Sinai Peninsula, and in Palestine and Jordan. After the armistice the regiment eventually returned to Australia in March 1919. For its role in the war the regiment was awarded nineteen battle honours.
The 4th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in August 1914, as the divisional cavalry regiment for the 1st Division. The regiment fought against the forces of the German Empire and the Ottoman Empire, in Egypt, at Gallipoli, on the Western front, on the Sinai Peninsula, and in Palestine and Jordan. After the armistice the regiment eventually returned to Australia in March 1919. For its role in the war the regiment was awarded twenty-one battle honours.
The 6th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in September 1914, and assigned to the 2nd Light Horse Brigade. The regiment fought against the forces of the German Empire and the Ottoman Empire, in Egypt, at Gallipoli, on the Sinai Peninsula, and in Palestine and Jordan. After the armistice the regiment eventually returned to Australia in March 1919. For its role in the war the regiment was awarded sixteen battle honours. During the inter-war years, the regiment was re-raised as a part-time unit based in New South Wales, adopting the designation of the "New South Wales Mounted Rifles". It was later converted to a motor regiment during the early years of the Second World War before being redesignated as an armoured car regiment. Nevertheless, it was disbanded in early 1943 without having been deployed overseas. During the post war years, the regiment was re-raised as part of the Citizens Military Force, and in 1956 was converted into an infantry unit, and in 1960 was subsumed into the Royal New South Wales Regiment.
The 13th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in March 1915, and eventually assigned as the mounted regiment for the Australian Corps. During the war the regiment fought against the forces of the Ottoman Empire, at Gallipoli, and against the German Empire on the Western Front. For its role in the war the regiment was awarded twelve battle honours. In 1921, it was later re-raised as a part-time unit of the Citizens Forces, and was briefly amalgamated with the 19th Light Horse. During the Second World War, the regiment was converted into an armoured regiment, designated the "13th Armoured Regiment", although it was disbanded in late 1943 without seeing action.
The 15th Light Horse Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment of the Australian Army during the First World War. The regiment was raised in Palestine in 1918, from soldiers that had been serving with the Imperial Camel Corps Brigade, and assigned to the 5th Light Horse Brigade. During the war the regiment fought against the forces of the Ottoman Empire, in the Sinai and Palestine Campaign and was awarded fourteen battle honours. During the inter-war years, the regiment was re-raised as a part-time unit based in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales. It was later converted to a motor regiment during the Second World War but was disbanded in 1944 without having been deployed overseas. In the post war period, the regiment was briefly re-formed, before being amalgamated into the 1st/15th Royal New South Wales Lancers in 1956.
The Australian Army has used tanks from after the First World War, through the interwar period, the Second World War, the Cold War and to the present day. Throughout this period the Army has primarily been a light infantry force, with its tanks mainly being used in the direct support role. The Australian Army's tanks have seen combat during the Second World War and the Vietnam War, where they proved successful despite some of the designs employed being considered obsolete. The first Australian tanks were a small number of British medium and light tanks which were operated mainly for training purposes during the 1920s and 1930s.
The 14th Armoured Regiment was a unit of the Australian Army, which served during World War II. The regiment was formed in May 1942 as part of the 6th Australian Armoured Brigade. It was originally a Militia unit which originated from the 17th Light Horse Regiment. It was disbanded in early 1943 without seeing combat.
The 18th Light Horse Regiment was a Citizens Military Force unit of the Australian Light Horse, formed during the post-World War I reorganisation of the Australian Army. The regiment traces its origins back to the militia cavalry regiments raised in the colony of South Australia, such as the Adelaide Cavalry Squadron, the Adelaide Mounted Rifles and the South Australian Mounted Rifles. This is a different unit to the pre-World War I, 18th Australian Light Horse.
The 23rd Light Horse Regiment (Barossa) was a Citizens Military Force (CMF) unit of the Australian Light Horse, formed during the 1912 reorganisation of the Australian Army. The regiment traces its origins back to the militia cavalry units raised in the colony of South Australia, specifically the South Australian Mounted Rifles.
The 20th Pioneer Battalion was an Australian Army pioneer unit that served in New Guinea during World War II. A Militia unit, the battalion was originally formed as a light horse regiment in 1918. Through the 20th Light Horse Regiment, the unit drew lineage back to early Victorian colonial forces, raised in 1885. During the early part of World War II, the unit was converted from a light horse regiment to a motorised unit – the 20th Motor Regiment – and undertook defensive duties in Victoria and then Queensland. In 1944, it deployed in a dismounted role to Merauke in Dutch New Guinea, to defend the Allied airfield that had been constructed there. The unit was later converted into a pioneer battalion in early 1945, deploying to New Guinea in the final stages of the war. It was disbanded in November 1945.
