185th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)

Last updated

185th Infantry Brigade
ActiveFormed 1 September 1942
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
Branch Flag of the British Army.svg British Army
TypeInfantry
SizeBrigade
Part of 79th Armoured Division
3rd Infantry Division
Insignia
Identification
symbol
Black Triangle with a smaller inverted Red Triangle inside
Abbreviation185 Bde

The 185th Infantry Brigade (185 Bde) was an infantry brigade formation of the British Army raised during the Second World War that participated in the Normandy landings of 6 June 1944, fighting in the Normandy Campaign and the subsequent campaign in North-West Europe with the 3rd British Infantry Division.

Contents

History

The Brigade was formed on 1 September 1942 by redesignation of 204th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home), a static Home Defence formation serving under Durham and North Riding Area HQ. [1] [2] It was assigned frontline infantry battalions and became the infantry component of the new 79th Armoured Division. [1] [3] When 79th Armoured was reorganised as a specialist armour formation in April 1943, 185th Brigade transferred to the 3rd Infantry Division, training for Operation Overlord. [1] [4] The 3rd Infantry Division was the first British formation to land at Sword on D-Day. During the often intense fighting from Sword to Bremen, the 3rd Infantry Division suffered 2,586 killed with over 12,500 wounded or missing. [5] Throughout the North West Europe Campaign, two members of the brigade (and division) were awarded the Victoria Cross. They were Corporal Sidney Bates of the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment and Private James Stokes of the 2nd Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry.

Composition

Infantry waiting to get off 'Queen White' Beach Infantry waiting to move off 'Queen White' Beach.jpg
Infantry waiting to get off 'Queen White' Beach

The following units comprised 185th Brigade from its formation until August 1945: [1]

Commanders

185th Brigade's wartime commanders were: [1]

Sword

Sword was the codename of one of the five main landing beaches in Operation Neptune, the initial assault phase of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of Normandy on 6 June 1944.

Stretching 8 km from Ouistreham to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer it was the furthest east of the landing points and around 15 km from Caen. The landing site was divided into four zones — Oboe, Peter, Queen and Roger (west-east). The German Army's defences consisted of beach obstacles, anti-tank ditches, mines, machine guns and mortars at the beaches and across the River Orne at Merville there were heavy guns. The defending troops belonged to the 716th Static Infantry Division and could call on the support of the nearby 21st Panzer division. The landing forces were the British I Corps, comprising the 3rd British Infantry Division and the 27th Armoured Brigade.

German prisoners being escorted back through La Breche d'Hermanville, France, by men of the 2nd Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry, 6 June 1944. D-day - British Forces during the Invasion of Normandy 6 June 1944 B5027.jpg
German prisoners being escorted back through La Brèche d'Hermanville, France, by men of the 2nd Battalion, King's Shropshire Light Infantry, 6 June 1944.

As well as being the furthest east of the landing beaches, Sword was also the smallest, only wide enough for a brigade-sized landing force. The 3rd British Division had the task of getting enough troops ashore to push inland quickly and seize Caen, and link up with the British 6th Airborne Division, which had dropped in the night before in Operation Tonga.

Sword experienced the only counter-attack by the Germans on 6 June. British troops had been unable to link up with the 3rd Canadian Division on Juno, as had been planned and they were attacked by the 21st Panzer Division, veterans of the Western Desert Campaign. The 192nd Panzer Grenadier Regiment had reached Sword by 2000 hours but were subject to aerial attacks and were destroyed by the Royal Air Force (RAF) and the tanks of the 27th Armoured Brigade which had landed on Sword.

By the end of the day, 29,000 men had been landed at Sword with 630 casualties. Allied forces had advanced about four miles inland, the situation was stable and a link up with the Canadians on Juno had been established. However the major objective of Caen which was to have been captured on D Day still evaded them. There would be fierce fighting around the area for the next 6 weeks, known as the Battle for Caen.

Men of the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment clearing enemy resistance in Kervenheim, Germany, 3 March 1945. The Campaign in North West Europe 1944-45 B15046.jpg
Men of the 1st Battalion, Royal Norfolk Regiment clearing enemy resistance in Kervenheim, Germany, 3 March 1945.

The 185th Brigade went on to fight at Bourguebus Ridge, Mont Pincon, the Nederrijn, the Rhineland, and across the Rhine River. By the end of the war the 185th Brigade had been awarded both the VCs awarded to the 3rd Division and had suffered more casualties than the other two infantry brigades.

Related Research Articles

Sword Beach Code name for one of the zones for amphibious landings in Northern France on D-Day, 6 June 1944

Sword, commonly known as Sword Beach, was the code name given to one of the five main landing areas along the Normandy coast during the initial assault phase, Operation Neptune, of Operation Overlord, the Allied invasion of German-occupied France that commenced on 6 June 1944. Stretching 8 kilometres (5.0 mi) from Ouistreham to Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer, the beach proved to be the easternmost landing site of the invasion after the abortion of an attack on a sixth beach, code-named Band. Taking Sword was to be the responsibility of the British Army with sea transport, mine sweeping, and a naval bombardment force provided by the British Royal Navy as well as elements from the Polish, Norwegian and other Allied navies.

7th Armoured Division (United Kingdom)

The 7th Armoured Division was an armoured division of the British Army that saw distinguished active service during World War II, where its exploits in the Western Desert Campaign gained it the Desert Rats nickname.

53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division

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.

49th (West Riding) Infantry Division

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.

3rd (United Kingdom) Division

The 3rd Division is a regular army division of the British Army. It was created in 1809 by Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, as part of the Anglo-Portuguese Army, for service in the Peninsular War, and was known as the Fighting 3rd under Sir Thomas Picton during the Napoleonic Wars. The division fought at the Battle of Waterloo, as well as during the Crimean War and the Second Boer War. As a result of bitter fighting in 1916, during the First World War, the division became referred to as the 3rd (Iron) Division, or the Iron Division or Ironsides. During the Second World War, the division fought in the Battle of France including a rearguard action during the Dunkirk Evacuation, and played a prominent role in the D-Day landings of 6 June 1944. The division was to have been part of a proposed Commonwealth Corps, formed for a planned invasion of Japan in 1945–46, and later served in the British Mandate of Palestine. During the Second World War, the insignia became the "pattern of three" — a black triangle trisected by an inverted red triangle, created by Bernard Montgomery to instil pride in his troops.

Gold Beach Code name for one of the zones for amphibious landings in Northern France on D-Day, 6 June 1944

Gold, commonly known as Gold Beach, was the code name for one of the five areas of the Allied invasion of German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, during the Second World War. Gold, the central of the five areas, was located between Port-en-Bessin on the west and La Rivière on the east. High cliffs at the western end of the zone meant that the landings took place on the flat section between Le Hamel and La Rivière, in the sectors code-named Jig and King. Taking Gold was to be the responsibility of the British Army, with sea transport, mine sweeping, and a naval bombardment force provided by the Royal Navy as well as elements from the Dutch, Polish and other Allied navies.

3rd Canadian Division

The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as all units extending westwards from the city of Thunder Bay.

11th Armoured Division (United Kingdom)

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 D-Day landings of 6 June 1944, and it participated in the rapid advance across France, Belgium, and the Netherlands and, later, the Rhine crossing in March 1945, and later invaded Germany. It was disbanded in January 1946 and reformed towards the end of 1950. In 1956, it was converted into the 4th Infantry Division.

50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division

The 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division was an infantry division of the British Army that saw distinguished service in the Second World War. Pre-war, the division was part of the Territorial Army (TA) and the two Ts in the divisional insignia represent the three main rivers of its recruitment area, namely the rivers Tyne, and Tees. The division served in almost all of the major engagements of the European War from 1940 until late 1944 and also served with distinction in North Africa, the Mediterranean and Middle East from mid-1941 to 1943. The 50th Division was one of two British divisions to land in Normandy on D-Day, 6 June 1944, where it landed on Gold Beach. Four men of the division were awarded the Victoria Cross during the war, more than any other division of the British Army during the Second World War.

27th Armoured Brigade (United Kingdom)

The 27th Armoured Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army that served in the Second World War and played a crucial role in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944, and the following Battle of Normandy until disbandment in late 1944.

The 70th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw service during both the First and Second World War and postwar.

6th Guards Tank Brigade (United Kingdom)

The 6th Guards Tank Brigade was an armoured brigade of the British Army during the Second World War formed from the Foot Guards in 1941 as the 6th Guards Armoured Brigade when the United Kingdom was under the threat of invasion and more armoured formations were required.

Operation Perch British offensive of the Second World War

Operation Perch was a British offensive of the Second World War which took place from 7 to 14 June 1944, during the early stages of the Battle of Normandy. The operation was intended to encircle and seize the German occupied city of Caen, which was a D-Day objective for the British 3rd Infantry Division in the early phases of Operation Overlord. Operation Perch was to begin immediately after the British beach landings with an advance to the south-east of Caen by XXX Corps. Three days after the invasion the city was still in German hands and the operation was amended. The operation was expanded to include I Corps for a pincer attack on Caen.

The 159th Infantry Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army. Part of the Territorial Army (TA), the brigade was assigned to the 53rd (Welsh) Infantry Division and served with the division in the early stages of the Second World War until May 1942 when it was transferred to be the motorised infantry element of the 11th Armoured Division. The brigade would serve with the 11th Armoured in North-west Europe from June 1944 to May 1945.

The 1st Assault Brigade Royal Engineers was a specialised armoured formation of the British Army active in the Second World War. It was formed in mid-1943 and its structure was three Assault Regiments of the Royal Engineers. It was assigned to the 79th Armoured Division in preparation for the Normandy invasion of 6 June 1944. The unit comprised armoured vehicles modified for specialist roles, intended to assist with the landing phase of the operation.

214th Infantry Brigade (United Kingdom)

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.

Operation Mallard

Operation Mallard was the codename for an airborne forces operation, which was conducted by the British Army on 6 June 1944, as part of the Normandy landings during the Second World War.

231st Brigade (United Kingdom)

The 231st Brigade was an infantry brigade of the British Army that saw active service in both the First and the Second World Wars. In each case it was formed by redesignation of existing formations. In the First World War, it fought in Palestine and on the Western Front, while during the Second World War it served in the Allied invasion of Sicily, Italy and the Normandy landings of 6 June 1944.

148th Regiment Royal Armoured Corps

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.

3rd (Royal Northumberland Fusiliers) Reconnaissance Regiment

The 3rd Reconnaissance Regiment was a regiment of the Reconnaissance Corps, which was itself part of the Royal Armoured Corps, raised by the British Army during the Second World War.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Joslen, p. 360.
  2. Joslen, p. 367.
  3. Joslen, p. 30.
  4. Joslen, pp. 30–2, 43–4.
  5. Delaforce

Bibliography