ANZUK | |
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Active | 1 November 1971 – 31 January 1974 |
Country | |
Garrison/HQ | Singapore |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders |
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Insignia | |
Flag of ANZUK |
ANZUK was a tripartite force formed by Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom to defend the Asian Pacific region after the United Kingdom withdrew forces from the east of Suez in the early 1970s. The ANZUK force was formed in Singapore on 1 November 1971 under Rear Admiral David Wells and disbanded on 31 January 1974. [1]
ANZUK initially consisted of the following major units:
The land component of ANZUK Force was the units of 28th Commonwealth Infantry Brigade Group renamed and relocated from Malaysia to Singapore.
Brigade Commanders of 28 ANZUK Brigade were: [6]
Units that constituted 28 ANZUK Brigade were:
Contributing nations wore their individual national uniforms with the addition of the following identifying patches;
Sea and Air components did not wear any of the patches as they remained under national command and were only attached to NZUK command on an as required basis.
By 1973 the political climate in Australia and the United Kingdom had changed and it was deemed that ANZUK should be disbanded. Rear Admiral Wells, [22] the First ANZUK commander who established the Force, had the task of planning the run-down phase and handing over to his successor Air Vice Marshal Richard Gordon Wakeford, [23] to follow through.
Australia would be retaining a presence in Butterworth in Malaysia [24] and the United Kingdom had decided to withdrawal all its forces east of Suez. [25] [26] It was in New Zealand's interest to retain a force in southeast Asia, so on 30 January 1974 New Zealand Force South East Asia was formed, [27] taking under its command all the New Zealand units formerly part of ANZUK.
Over the course of 1974 the integrated units which made up the ANZUK were gradually disbanded and replaced by national units. On 31 January 1974 ceased to exist, followed on 16 December 1974 with the disbanding of the Naval and Air Headquarters and their assets reverted to their respective national command and what remained of the United Kingdom's land component forces became the 28th (UK) Infantry Brigade.
Taking several years for the Australian and United Kingdom units to draw down and withdraw, it was not until 1977 that NZFORSEA was the sole remaining foreign presence in Singapore.
The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment is the parent administrative regiment and corps of regular and reserve infantry battalions in the New Zealand Army. It was originally formed in 1947 with a singular Regular regiment and multiple reserve regiments. Over time, the regiments were turned into battalions, the reserve units amalgamated and more regular units raised and disbanded. Currently, the Regiment currently consists of two regular and three reserve battalions. Throughout its existence, units raised in this regiment have served and deployed on operations in Malaya, Vietnam, Borneo and various United Nations peacekeeping operations.
British Forces Overseas Hong Kong comprised the elements of the British Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force stationed in British Hong Kong. The Governor of Hong Kong also assumed the position of the commander-in-chief of the forces and the Commander British Forces in Hong Kong took charge of the daily deployment of the troops. Much of the British military left prior to the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997. The present article focuses mainly on the British garrison in Hong Kong in the post Second World War era. For more information concerning the British garrison during the Second World War and earlier, see the Battle of Hong Kong.
The 28th Infantry Brigade was a British Army formation which served during the First World War, the Second World War, The Malayan Emergency and Indonesian Confrontation.
The British Commonwealth Far East Strategic Reserve was a joint military force of the British, Australian, and New Zealand armed forces. Created in the 1950s and based in Malaya, the FESR was conceived as a forward defence point for Australia and New Zealand, while protecting Commonwealth interests in the Southeast Asian region from both internal and external communist threats. The FESR was made up of an infantry brigade and an aircraft carrier group, supported by squadrons of aircraft.
Operation Musketeer was the Anglo-French plan for the invasion of the Suez canal zone to capture the Suez Canal during the Suez Crisis in 1956. The operation had initially been given the codename Operation Hamilcar, but this name was quickly dropped when it was found that the British were painting an air recognition letter H on their vehicles, while the French, who spelled Hamilcar differently, were painting an A. Musketeer was chosen as a replacement because it started with M in both languages. Israel, which invaded the Sinai peninsula, had the additional objectives of opening the Straits of Tiran and halting fedayeen incursions into Israel. The Anglo-French military operation was originally planned for early September, but the necessity of coordination with Israel delayed it until early November. However, on 10 September British and French politicians and Chiefs of the General Staff agreed to adopt General Charles Keightley's alterations to the military plans with the intention of reducing Egyptian civilian casualties. The new plan, renamed Musketeer Revise, provided the basis of the actual Suez operation.
This is the Operation Herrick ground order of battle, which lists any British ground forces that have taken part in the duration of Operation Herrick between 2002 and 2014.
The Royal Australian Corps of Transport (RACT) is an administrative corps within the Australian Army. The RACT is ranked tenth in seniority of the corps of the Australian Army, and is the most senior logistics corps. It was formed on 1 June 1973 as an amalgamation of the Royal Australian Army Service Corps (RAASC) and Royal Australian Engineers Transportation Service. The RACT is responsible for the operation of army surface transport assets, movement control, terminal and postal services, and Army aspects of air logistic support.
The ANZUK Ordnance Depot was established in 1971 to provide logistical support to Australian, New Zealand and British forces stationed in Singapore and Malaysia as part of ANZUK Force. It was commanded by a Royal Army Ordnance Corps officer of the rank of lieutenant colonel and staffed by Australian, New Zealand and United Kingdom personnel and Locally Employed Civilians. This organisation operated for only a short period. Australia changed Government in 1972 and the incoming Labor Government decided to withdraw Australia’s commitment to the region. This took effect in 1974 and was followed later by the withdrawal of the British forces. It was then decided that New Zealand should form its own Advanced Ordnance Depot, designated the New Zealand Advanced Ordnance Depot (NZAOD). This was the start of a commitment which was to last until December 1989.
The Berlin Infantry Brigade was a British Army brigade-sized garrison based in West Berlin during the Cold War. After the end of World War II, under the conditions of the Yalta and Potsdam agreements, the Allied forces occupied West Berlin. This occupation lasted throughout the Cold War. The French Army also had units in Berlin, called the French Forces in Berlin and the US Army's unit in Berlin was the Berlin Brigade.
This is an order of battle listing the Japanese and Allied forces involved in the Battle of Milne Bay from 25 August – 7 September 1942.
This article describes the current structure of the New Zealand Army. It includes the army's order of battle and the headquarters locations of major units.
Terendak Camp is a Malaysian Army military base located in Sungai Udang, Central Melaka District, Melaka, Malaysia. It belonged to the Commonwealth of Nations before being handed over to the Malaysian Armed Forces in 1970. It is right next to the Sungai Udang Camp.
New Zealand Force South East Asia (NZFORSEA) (1974–1989) comprised the elements of the Royal New Zealand Navy, New Zealand Army and Royal New Zealand Air Force. Much of the New Zealand military left Singapore as part of operation Kupe in 1989, leaving behind a residual Defence Support Unit (NZDSU).
The ANZUK Support Group was established in 1971 to provide Transport and Supply services to Australian, New Zealand and British forces stationed in Singapore and Malaysia as part of ANZUK Force. It was commanded by a Royal Australian Army Service Corps officer and staffed by Australian, New Zealand, United Kingdom personnel and Locally Employed Civilians (LECs). This organisation operated for only a short period. Australia changed Government in 1972 and the incoming Labor Government decided to withdraw Australia’s commitment to the region. This took effect in 1974 and was followed later by the withdrawal of the British forces. It was then decided that New Zealand should form its own Transport Company, designated the New Zealand Transport Company. This was the start of a commitment which was to last until December 1989.
The 28th Commonwealth Infantry Brigade Group was a Commonwealth formation of the Far East Strategic Reserve, based in Malaysia from 1955 to 1971 of which elements participated in the Malayan Emergency, Indonesia Confrontation and the Vietnam War.
5 Advanced Ordnance Depot was a short lived Royal Australian Army Ordnance Corps and Royal New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps combined Depot in Singapore 1970 to 1971.
From four Stores Depots in the main centres of New Zealand at the beginning of the 20th century, the Royal New Zealand Army Ordnance Corps (RNZAOC) expanded and shrank to meet the operational needs of the NZ Army, Ordnance units have been deployed worldwide and across the breath and width of New Zealand.
With the adoption of the Singapore strategy in the 1920s as a key cornerstone of Imperial Defence, Singapore and Malaya became the major British bases in the East, not only to defend British possessions in Asia, but also the dominions of Australia and New Zealand, who also contributed a large portion of the construction costs.