56th Battalion (Australia) | |
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![]() Soldiers of the 56th Battalion in 1937 | |
Active | 1916–1919 1921–1944 1956–1957 |
Country | ![]() |
Branch | Army |
Type | Infantry |
Size | ~900–1,000 officers and men [Note 1] |
Part of | 14th Brigade, 5th Division (WWI) 5th Brigade, 2nd Division (WWII) |
Engagements | World War I World War II |
Insignia | |
Unit colour patch | |
The 56th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in 1916 for service during the World War I and took part in the fighting in the trenches of the Western Front in France and Belgium before being amalgamated with the 54th Battalion in late 1918 following the German spring offensive reduced the numbers in both battalions. After the war, the battalion was re-raised as a part-time unit in New South Wales. During World War II the battalion was mobilised and undertook garrison duties in Australia until it was disbanded in 1944. It was briefly re-raised in 1956, but was disbanded the following year and its personnel used to re-raise the 4th Battalion, which later became part of the Royal New South Wales Regiment.
The 56th Battalion was originally formed on 14 February 1916 during the reorganisation and expansion of the First Australian Imperial Force (AIF) that took place in Egypt following the Gallipoli campaign. [3] This was achieved by transferring cadres of experienced personnel predominately from the 1st Division to the newly formed battalions and combining them with recently recruited personnel who had been dispatched as reinforcements from Australia. [4] With an authorised strength of 1,023 men, [1] the unit's first intake of personnel were drawn from men originating from New South Wales, many of whom had already served with the 4th Battalion. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Allan Humphrey Scott, the battalion formed part of the 14th Brigade attached to the 5th Australian Division. [5]
After a period of training in Egypt, the AIF's infantry divisions were transferred to Europe to fight on the Western Front. Arriving in Marseilles on 30 June 1916, the 56th Battalion was transported to northern France and within a fortnight was committed to the Battle of Fromelles, where the 5th Division undertook a disastrous attack that was later described as "the worst 24 hours in Australia's entire history". [6] The 56th, along with the rest of the division, suffered heavy casualties, but was not withdrawn from the line until two months later. After enduring the coldest winter in 40 years in the Somme, during early 1917 the battalion took part in the brief advance the Allies enjoyed as the Germans withdrew to the Hindenburg Line, before undertaking a defensive role during the Second Battle of Bullecourt, and then launching an attack at Polygon Wood in September. [5]
In early 1918, after wintering in Belgium, it was transferred south to France to assist in repulsing the major offensive the Germans launched on the Western Front following the capitulation of Tsarist Russia. [5] Along with the rest of the 5th Division, the battalion defended the Allied line around Corbie, holding a position north of Villers-Bretonneux. After the German offensive lost momentum, in August, around Amiens, the Allies launched the Hundred Days Offensive, which ultimately brought about an end to the war. The 14th Brigade remained in reserve initially, before capturing Peronne in early September. During late September and early October the 56th took part in the Battle of St. Quentin Canal, before it was withdrawn from the line. Having suffered heavy casualties during the fighting earlier in the year, the Australian Corps was re-organised and the 56th Battalion was amalgamated with the 54th Battalion on 11 October forming the 54th/56th Battalion. [7] This unit did not see any further action before the war ended in November and together they were later amalgamated with the rest of the 14th Brigade, with the 56th Battalion being disbanded on 10 April 1919. [5]
During the fighting, the 56th Battalion lost 529 men killed in action or died on active service and 1,630 wounded. Members of the battalion received the following decorations: two Distinguished Service Orders (DSO), one Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), 21 Military Crosses (MCs) with one Bar, 20 Distinguished Conduct Medals (DCMs), 50 Military Medals (MMs), nine Meritorious Service Medals (MSMs), 25 Mentions in Despatches (MIDs) and eight foreign awards. [5] The battalion received a total of 16 battle honours for its involvement in the war in 1927. [8]
In 1921, following the demobilisation of the AIF, Australia's part-time military force, the Citizen Force, was reorganised to duplicate the divisional structure of the AIF, reviving its numerical designations. [9] As a result, the 56th Battalion was re-formed in the state of New South Wales, as part of the 14th Brigade, within the 2nd Military District. [10] Upon formation, the battalion drew personnel from two previously existing units, the 2nd Battalion, 56th Infantry Regiment and the 5th Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment. [11] In 1927, when territorial titles were adopted, the battalion became known as "The Riverina Regiment". It also received an official motto, that of Trutina Probatus at this time. In 1937, the battalion became allied to the Gloucestershire Regiment. [8]
During World War II, the 56th Battalion undertook garrison duties in New South Wales and Western Australia, as part of the 5th Brigade of the 2nd Division. [12] In 1943, the battalion was gazetted as an AIF unit after the majority of its personnel volunteered to serve outside of Australian territory, nevertheless, it did not serve overseas, and was disbanded on 9 June 1944. [11] After the war, the battalion was not reformed until July 1956 when it was re-raised as the 56th Reconnaissance Battalion (Riverina Regiment). It was disbanded again in September 1957. [11] Along with the 7th/21st Australian Horse it formed the basis of the reformed 4th Battalion, which was raised in 1958 and later became part of the Royal New South Wales Regiment. [13]
The 56th Battalion held the following alliances:
The 56th Battalion was awarded the following battle honours: [8]
The 3rd Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally raised as part of the First Australian Imperial Force for service during World War I, the battalion formed part of the 1st Brigade, attached to the 1st Division. It was formed shortly after the war broke out and was among the first Australian units to be sent overseas, arriving in Egypt in December 1914. In April 1915 the battalion participated in the Landing at Anzac Cove, coming ashore in the second and third waves. In December 1915 the 3rd Battalion was evacuated from the Gallipoli peninsula and withdrawn to Egypt again, where it took part in the defence of the Suez Canal before being sent to France to fight on the Western Front in March 1916. For the next two and a half years the unit would serve in the trenches in France and Belgium and would take part in many of the major battles fought during that time. In May 1919, following the end of the war, the battalion was disbanded and its personnel repatriated back to Australia.
The 4th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally raised as part of the First Australian Imperial Force during the First World War, the battalion formed part of the 1st Brigade, attached to the 1st Division. During the war the battalion fought at Gallipoli and in the trenches on the Western Front, before being disbanded in 1919. In 1921, the battalion was re-raised as a militia unit and designated as the "4th Battalion ", adopting the designation of the Australian Rifles militia unit from which many of the battalion's recruits had come during the war. In 1930, the battalion was amalgamated with the 3rd Battalion and they remained linked until 1936, when they were delinked.
The 5th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised in Victoria as part of the First Australian Imperial Force for service during World War I, the battalion formed part of the 2nd Brigade, attached to the 1st Division. It participated in the landing at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915, coming ashore in the second wave, before taking part in the fighting at Krithia and then at Lone Pine. In December 1915, the battalion was withdrawn from the peninsula and returned to Egypt where it was involved in defending the Suez Canal until being transferred to the Western Front in France in early 1916. After that, over the course of the next two and a half years the 5th Battalion was rotated in and out of the front line and took part in a number of significant battles including at Pozieres, Ypres, Amiens and the Hindenburg Line. Following the end of the war, the battalion was disbanded and its personnel returned to Australia. The battalion was re-raised during the inter-war years as a part-time unit and was later mobilised during World War II, but did not serve overseas. During the post war period, the battalion has existed at various times before being subsumed into the 5th/6th Battalion, Royal Victoria Regiment.
The 17th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Although its numerical designation was bestowed upon it during World War I, the 17th Battalion can trace its lineage back to 1860, when a unit of the New South Wales Volunteer Rifles was raised in St Leonards, New South Wales. This unit has since been disbanded and reformed a number times. Through its links with the units of the colonial New South Wales defence force, the battalion's history includes service in the Sudan and South Africa. During World War I, the 17th Battalion was raised for overseas service as part of the Australian Imperial Force. Attached to the 5th Brigade, 2nd Division, the battalion was raised in 1915 and sent to Egypt initially, before taking part in the fighting at Gallipoli against the Turks. Later the battalion was sent to the Western Front in France and Belgium, where it served in the trenches as part of the Australian Corps. Throughout the course of the war, the battalion won numerous battle honours and its members received many individual awards, however, at the end of the war the battalion was disbanded in April 1919.
The 20th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised in early 1915 as part of the Australian Imperial Force, it was attached to the 5th Brigade, 2nd Division that served during World War I. The battalion first saw action during the Gallipoli campaign, before being evacuated in December 1915. After that the 20th Battalion was sent to France where they served in the trenches along the Western Front. Over the course of the next two years, they fought in many major battles, including the battles of the Hundred Days Offensive at the end of the war. The 20th Battalion's last engagement was at Montbrehain in October 1918. Following the end of the war, it was disbanded in April 1919. It was later re-raised in 1921, although it was amalgamated in 1929 due to manpower shortages. During World War II the battalion was briefly re-raised and carried out garrison duties in Australia.
The 57th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Formed in early 1916 for service during World War I, the battalion served on the Western Front until the end of the war, when it was disbanded. In 1921, it was re-raised as a part-time unit in Victoria, known as "The Merri Regiment". In 1930, the battalion was amalgamated with the 60th Battalion, to form the 57th/60th Battalion, which remained linked until it was disbanded in 1946, after having fought against the Japanese in New Guinea and Bougainville during World War II.
The 16th Battalion, Royal Western Australia Regiment is an Australian Army reserve infantry battalion located in Western Australia and one of the two battalions of the Royal Western Australia Regiment. The battalion was first formed during the First World War, during which it fought during the Gallipoli Campaign and on the Western Front in France and Belgium as part of the Australian Imperial Force. It was re-formed as a part-time unit in Western Australia during the inter-war years, and served in the New Britain Campaign against the Japanese during the Second World War. In the post war years, the battalion became part of the Royal Western Australia Regiment and currently forms part of the 13th Brigade.
The 35th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally raised in late 1915 for service during the First World War, the battalion saw service on the Western Front in France and Belgium before being disbanded in 1919. In 1921, it was re-raised in the Newcastle region of New South Wales as a unit of the Citizens Force. It was subsequently amalgamated a number of times during the inter-war years following the Great Depression, firstly with the 33rd Battalion and then the 2nd Battalion, before being re-raised in its own right upon the outbreak of the Second World War. Following this the battalion undertook garrison duties in Australia before being deployed to New Guinea where they took part in the Huon Peninsula campaign. After the end of the war, the 35th Battalion was disbanded in early 1946.
The 13th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally raised for the 1st Australian Imperial Force during the First World War, it was formed just six weeks after the start of the war. Along with the 14th, 15th and 16th Battalions which were recruited from New South Wales, it formed the 4th Brigade. The battalion saw service initially at Gallipoli before being transferred to France in 1916. For the next two years it fought in the trenches of the Western Front, earning numerous battle honours in the process.
The 45th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised for service during World War I, the battalion served in the trenches on the Western Front in France and Belgium from mid-1916 until the end of hostilities in November 1918. Following this, it was disbanded in May 1919. Later, in 1921, the battalion was re-raised as a part-time unit of the Citizens Force, based in New South Wales. The battalion remained on the order of battle until 1942, when it was merged with the 1st Battalion as part of a force reduction that was undertaken at that time in response to an over mobilisation of the Australian military in the early part of World War II. In 1948, the battalion was re-raised again and remained on the order of battle until 1960 when it was absorbed into the Royal New South Wales Regiment.
The 14th Brigade was an infantry brigade of the Australian Army. Originally raised in 1912 as a Militia formation, it was later re-raised in 1916 as part of the First Australian Imperial Force for service during World War I, the brigade was assigned to the 5th Division and served on the Western Front between 1916 and 1918 before being disbanded. It was later re-raised as part of the Australia's part-time military forces during the inter-war years. During World War II, the brigade was a Militia formation and it took part briefly in the New Guinea campaign with elements of the brigade undertaking defensive duties around Port Moresby before taking part in the fighting along the Kokoda Track and around the Japanese beachheads at Buna–Gona. The brigade was disbanded in mid-1943 as part of a rationalisation of Australian military forces as a result of manpower shortages.
The 60th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was raised for service during World War I in 1916 and took part in the fighting on the Western Front for two-and-a-half years. Following the end of the war it was disbanded before being re-raised in 1921 as a part-time unit of the Citizen Force. In 1930, as a result of manpower shortages, the 60th was amalgamated with the 57th Battalion to form the 57th/60th Battalion and this unit subsequently saw service in the South West Pacific during World War II fighting against the Japanese, before being disbanded in 1946.
The 58th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was raised in 1916 for overseas service during World War I and saw action on the Western Front from June 1916 until the end of the war. Following the end of hostilities it was disbanded in 1919; however, in 1921 the battalion was re-raised as part of the part-time Citizens Force and remained in existence until 1942 when it was amalgamated with the 59th Battalion to form the 58th/59th Battalion. That battalion subsequently saw active service in the Pacific against the Japanese during World War II before being disbanded in 1946. After the war, the battalion was re-formed as an amalgamated Citizens Military Force unit, the 58th/32nd Battalion, which was based in Melbourne. This unit remained in existence until 1960 when it was subsumed into the Royal Victoria Regiment.
The 59th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Initially raised for service during World War I, the battalion fought on the Western Front in France and Belgium between 1916 and 1918, before being disbanded in 1919. In 1921, it was re-raised as a part-time unit of the Militia in Victoria. They remained in existence until 1942 when, due to a manpower shortage in the Australian economy, the decision was made to amalgamate the battalion with the 58th Battalion to form the 58th/59th Battalion. Together they remained linked throughout World War II, serving in New Guinea and Bougainville in 1943–1945. In 1952, the 59th Battalion was re-raised and subsequently was absorbed into the Royal Victoria Regiment in 1960.
The 30th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally formed in 1915 during the First World War as part of the all-volunteer Australian Imperial Force (AIF) and saw service on the Western Front before being disbanded in 1919. It was re-raised in 1921 but was later amalgamated with the 51st Battalion in 1930. In 1935 the two battalions were delinked and the 30th re-raised in its own right. During the Second World War it undertook garrison duties in Australia before undertaking active service in New Guinea in 1944–1945. After the war, it was disbanded in early 1946. In 1948, the battalion was re-raised again and remained on the order of battle until 1960 when it was absorbed into the Royal New South Wales Regiment.
The 54th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. It was originally raised in 1916 for service during World War I and took part in the fighting in the trenches of the Western Front in France and Belgium before being amalgamated with the 56th Battalion in late 1918 following the German spring offensive that reduced the numbers in both battalions. The battalion was re-raised in 1921 as a part-time unit in New South Wales before being amalgamated with the 20th Battalion in 1929. At the outbreak of World War II, the battalion was reformed in its own right, undertaking garrison duties in Australia until being disbanded in 1944.
The 38th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Originally formed in 1916 for service overseas during World War I as part of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), the battalion was recruited from the state of Victoria and formed part of the 10th Brigade, 3rd Division. It served throughout the war on the Western Front before being disbanded in 1919. During the inter-war years, the battalion was re-raised as a part-time military unit and during the World War II undertook garrison duties in Australia, but did not see combat. After the war, it was re-formed in Victoria and was eventually subsumed into the Royal Victoria Regiment, with its honours and traditions being preserved by the 8th/7th Battalion, Royal Victoria Regiment.
The 43rd Battalion was an Australian Army infantry unit that was originally formed during the First World War as part of the all-volunteer Australian Imperial Force. Raised in early 1916, the battalion subsequently fought in the trenches of the Western Front from late 1916 until the end of the war in November 1918. After the war, the 43rd was re-raised as a part-time unit in South Australia, serving until 1930 when it was merged with the 48th Battalion. During the Second World War, the 43rd was briefly re-raised between 1942 and 1944, but did not see action before it was disbanded. After the war, the 43rd and 48th were once again merged, existing until 1960 when they became part of the Royal South Australia Regiment.
The 44th Battalion was an infantry unit of the Australian Army. Originally formed in 1916 for overseas service during World War I, the battalion fought in the trenches along the Western Front in France and Belgium between late 1916 and 1918, before disbanding at the conclusion of hostilities. During the inter-war years, the 44th became part of the part-time Citizens Force, based in Western Australia. During World War II, it undertook garrison duties in Australia but was not deployed overseas to fight. In the post-World War II period the 44th was amalgamated with the 11th Battalion, before being subsumed into the Royal Western Australia Regiment in 1960.
The 5th Machine Gun Battalion was an infantry support unit of the Australian Army. Originally formed in March 1918 for service during World War I as part of the all volunteer Australian Imperial Force, it was one of five such units raised as part of the AIF during the war. The battalion consisted of four machine gun companies, which had previously existed as independent companies assigned mainly at brigade level. The battalion took part in the final stages of the war, seeing action during the Allied defensive operations during the German spring offensive and then the Allied Hundred Days Offensive, which finally brought an end to the war. The battalion was disbanded in mid-1919 during the demobilisation of the AIF following the conclusion of hostilities. During World War II, the battalion was re-raised as part of the Militia in September 1942, and undertook garrison duties in the Torres Strait, until it was disbanded in May 1944.