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144-646: GHQ Liaison Regiment (known as Phantom ) was a special reconnaissance unit of the British Army first formed in 1939 during the early stages of World War II . The regiment's headquarters were at The Richmond Hill Hotel in Richmond, Surrey (now in London); its base (including the officers' mess and billet ) was at Pembroke Lodge , a Georgian house in Richmond Park , London . It had its origins as

288-869: A Radio Reconnaissance Platoon . There is a SIGINT platoon within the Intelligence Company of the new Marine Special Operations Support Group . Army Special Forces (SF) have Special Operations Team-Alpha that can operate with an SF team, or independently. This low-level collection team typically has four men. Their primary equipment is the AN/PRD-13 SOF SIGINT Manpack System (SSMS) , with capabilities including direction-finding capability from 2 MHz to 2 GHz, and monitoring from 1 to 1400 MHz. SOT-As also are able to exploit computer networks , and sophisticated communications systems. The British 18 (UKSF) Signal Regiment provides SIGINT personnel, including from

432-563: A main line of troops. For example, reorganized US Army brigade combat teams – now the army's " unit of action " – have or will gain reconnaissance squadrons (i.e., "light battalion"-sized units). US Army Battlefield Surveillance Brigades (BfSB) have specialized Long Range Surveillance (LRS) companies. Long range surveillance teams operate behind enemy lines, deep within enemy territory, forward of battalion reconnaissance teams and cavalry scouts in their assigned area of interest. The duration of an LRS mission depends on equipment and supplies

576-579: A number equal to that at Stalingrad on the Eastern Front earlier in the year. On 19 April, the division, now commanded by Major-General Sidney Kirkman (formerly the Commander, Royal Artillery (CRA) of the Eighth Army) after Nichols was sacked by Eighth Army commander Bernard Montgomery , was relieved by the 56th (London) Infantry Division and withdrawn from the front line, and on 24 April

720-653: A position called 'the Bastion' in front of the main line while the 151st Brigade supported by the 50th Royal Tank Regiment attacked the line proper to their right. The infantry were to be equipped with short wooden scaling ladders to climb the banks of the Wadi. None of the infantry battalions had regained their full strength, and opposing them were the Italian Young Fascist and the German 164th Light Divisions . It

864-507: A radar. It turned into an opportunity to capture the radar and, despite overloading the helicopter on its return trip, they were able to bring the entire radar back for TECHINT analysis. SR teams may be assigned to observe and measure specific information at a site or enemy facility for future operations. Regular ground forces, for example, might need a road and bridge surveyed to know whether heavy vehicles can cross it. The SR may be able to confirm this. An engineering specialist, preferably from

1008-488: A similar number of casualties, as well as destroying a number of tanks. The attack had been so effective that 7th Panzer Division believed it had been attacked by five infantry divisions. The attack also made the German commanders of Panzergruppe von Kleist nervous, with forces left behind to guard lines of communication. By now Arras was becoming a salient in the German lines and increasingly vulnerable. The four Brigades of

1152-618: A special operations organization may need to augment the team. SR commanders need to ensure such missions cannot be performed by organic reconnaissance elements of a maneuver force commander supported by the SR organization or other supporting reconnaissance services such as IMINT. For example, during the Falklands War of 1982, UK Special Air Service delivered eight 4-man patrols via helicopter deep into enemy-held territory up to 20 miles (32 km) from their hide sites several weeks before

1296-450: A squadron HQ (SHQ) and a number of patrols (one per corps and a further ten further forward of corps). Each patrol consisted of an officer, an NCO and up to nine other ranks. They were typically equipped with Norton motorcycles , Jeeps, Morris 15cwt trucks and White M3 A1 Scout cars and carried a 107 Receiver, 52 and 22 sets. The patrols either embedded with other formations or went on special missions from their Army HQs. The patrols' role

1440-550: A team. Lightweight unmanned aerial vehicles with imagery and other intelligence collection capabilities are potentially useful for SR, since small UAVs have low observability. SR team members can be trained to use them, or specialists can be attached to a team. The UAV may transmit what it sees, using one or more sensors, either to the SR team or a monitoring headquarters. Potential sensors include stabilized and highly magnified photography, low-light television , thermal imagers and imaging radar . Larger UAVs, which could be under

1584-664: A wide sweeping movement around the left flank of the Gazala line at Bir Hakeim, then moved north behind it, while the Italians mounted diversionary attacks against the South Africans and 50th Division. Intense fighting quickly developed behind the 150th Brigade box in an area known as The Cauldron , as four German and Italian armoured divisions fought and initially overran the British formations which were committed piecemeal to

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1728-417: Is a blurred line between SR and direct action in support of amphibious operations when an outlying island is captured, with the primary goal of using it as a base for surveillance and support functions. Despite being a large scale operation by SR standards, an early example is the attack by elements of the 77th Infantry Division on Kerama Retto before the main battle . Operation Trudy Jackson, which involved

1872-575: Is a prerequisite for other special operations missions, such as UW or FID. DA or counter-terror (CT), usually implies clandestine SR. Mission planners may not know if a given force can move over a specific route. These variables may be hydrographic , meteorological, or geographic. SR teams can resolve trafficability or fordability , or locate obstacles or barriers. MASINT (measurement and signature intelligence) sensors exist for most of these requirements. The SR team can place remotely-operated weather instrumentation . Portable devices to determine

2016-485: Is a standard SR mission. Capture of enemy equipment for examination by TECHINT specialists may be a principal part of SR patrols and larger raids, such as the World War II Operation Biting raid on Saint-Jouin-Bruneval, France which captured a German Würzburg radar and a German radar technician. Not uncommon for such operations, a technical specialist (radar engineer Flight Sergeant C.W.H. Cox)

2160-410: Is greater than basic first aid. All these organizations have special operations roles, with SR often being performed by specialists within an organization. Certain organizations are tasked for a response involving areas contaminated by chemical weapons , biological agents , or radioactivity . Since reconnaissance is a basic military skill, "special" reconnaissance refers to the means of operating in

2304-676: Is made with us early 25 Sept...consider it unlikely we can hold out long enough ..." Two Phantom officers were subsequently awarded the Military Cross for maintaining these vital communications during the operation. Phantom units also operated with XXX Corps and with General Browning whose HQ was next to 82nd Airborne HQ in Groesbeek . Phantom deployed in squadrons in North West Europe, South East Europe, North Africa and Italy. Each squadron supported an Army and consisted of

2448-460: The 26th Indian Infantry Brigade , the 1st Greek Brigade, the 2nd Free French Brigade and the Alexandria garrison. The division's artillery was loaned to XIII Corps as reinforcements. At the start of September the 151st Brigade was detached and placed under command of the 2nd New Zealand Division in the front line, and then with the 44th (Home Counties) Division later in the month, south of

2592-476: The 44th Royal Tank Regiment , to make a 25-mile forced march to the bridge. The few paratroopers on the bridge were forced off it by lack of ammunition and newly dispatched German paratroopers of the 3rd Parachute Regiment, part of the 1st Parachute Division , only two hours before 9th Battalion D.L.I. arrived. Attacking in the early hours of 15 July, the battalion was forced back over the river after fierce hand-to-hand fighting in densely planted vineyards, with

2736-572: The 4th and 7th Royal Tank Regiment (R.T.R.), one of each in both columns, artillery and other supporting troops, totalling 74 tanks and around 2,000 men. Attacking on 21 May, the right column (8th D.L.I. and 7th R.T.R.) initially made rapid progress, taking the villages of Duisans and Warlus and a number of German prisoners but they soon ran into German infantry and Waffen-SS , and were counterattacked by Stukas and tanks and had many casualties. The left column (6th D.L.I. and 4th R.T.R.) also enjoyed early success, taking Danville, Beaurains and reaching

2880-629: The British paratroopers dropped around Primisole bridge a key bridge on the Sicilian coast south of Catania . High winds and lack of landing craft frustrated swift troop concentration in both cases, with only 30 out of 125 planes dropping on the Drop Zone at Primosole. Early on 14 July, the 69th Brigade fought the Germans and Italians around Lentini, allowing the 151st Brigade, supported by tanks of

3024-894: The Continuation War , which was the name of the Finnish theater of World War II active between 1941 and 1944, Finland employed several kaukopartio ("long range patrol") units. The US Government established the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), modeled on the British SOE, in June 1942. Following the end of the war OSS became the basis for the CIA. During the Vietnam War , respective division and brigades in-country trained their Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol members (now known as

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3168-494: The Gazala Line from the 4th Indian Division . The Gazala Line was a series of defensive "boxes", protected by mine-fields and wire and with little showing above ground, each occupied by a brigade of infantry with attached artillery, engineers and a field ambulance. The brigades' B echelons, with stores and motor transport, were sited some miles to the rear. In the event of an Axis attack, these boxes were intended to pin down

3312-703: The Long Range Surveillance units). However, the US Army's 5th Special Forces Group with support from seconded Australian SASR and AATTV instructors, held an advanced course in the art of patrolling for potential Army and Marine team leaders at their Recondo School in Nha Trang, Vietnam , for the purpose of locating enemy guerrilla and main force North Vietnamese Army units, as well as artillery spotting , intelligence gathering, forward air control , and bomb damage assessment . During

3456-741: The No 3 British Air Mission in France in 1939. Moving with the Belgian General Staff, its role was to report information about the Allied forward positions from Belgian GHQ to the Advanced Air Striking Force HQ so as to pinpoint the changing locations of "bomb lines". These were the battle areas not occupied by Allied troops and suitable targets for bombs and shells. In November 1939, Lieut-Col George 'Hoppy' Hopkinson

3600-511: The Scud hunt during Operation Desert Storm . SR units detect, identify, and locate targets to be engaged by lethal or nonlethal attack systems under the control of higher headquarters. SR also provides information on weather, obscuring factors such as terrain masking and camouflage, friendly or civilian presence in the target area, and other information that will be needed in targeting by independent attack systems. During Operation Desert Storm ,

3744-579: The Special Air Service (SAS) to provide communications with SAS Brigade HQ . Later, with Phantom efficiency proven and with US forces under the leadership of the 12th US Army Group, similar arrangements were made for Phantom to provide communications with US corps. Famous Phantom officers included: actors Major David Niven (who initially commanded A Squadron and who remarked in a letter, "these were wonderful days which I would not have missed for anything"), Tam Williams and Willoughby Gray ;

3888-661: The Special Air Service a commando group. In 1942, following the onset of the Pacific Theater of World War II , the Allied Intelligence Bureau , was set up in Australia. Drawing on personnel from Australian, British, New Zealand and other Allied forces, it included Coastwatchers and "special units" that undertook reconnaissance behind enemy lines. During the Winter War (1939–40) and

4032-531: The Territorial Army and Militia Act 1921 . This resulted in the 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division being formed. It contained the same infantry brigades as before, the 149th ( 4th to 7th Battalions Royal Northumberland Fusiliers ), 150th ( 4th Battalion, East Yorkshire Regiment , 4th and 5th Green Howards and 5th Durham Light Infantry ), and 151st ( 6th to 9th battalions Durham Light Infantry). British military doctrine development during

4176-557: The War on Terror , the US Army began to develop a limited number of special reconnaissance platoons at the battalion level of conventional infantry units. These platoons were most often composed of Ranger-qualified soldiers and given selection of advanced training in order to allow them to work in close conjunction with Special Forces and US Government Agencies. Conventional infantry formations have long had dedicated reconnaissance units, such as scout platoons , that can operate forward of

4320-464: The "CARVER" mnemonic: There are some differences between general and SR processes of target acquisition: conventional units typically identify targets that directly affect the performance of their mission, while SR target acquisition may be of a much wider scope and include identifying enemy locations or resources of strategic significance. Examples of difficult strategic targets included Ho Chi Minh trail infrastructures and logistic concentrations, and

4464-567: The 150th Brigade and Division H.Q. was immediately sent to plan defences around Alamein. The rest of the division was sent to Cyprus , where it constructed defences on the island, especially around the airport and city of Nicosia. Reunited in July, the division continued its work in the island's pleasant surroundings, leaving in November, relieved by the 5th Indian Infantry Division . Landing in Haifa,

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4608-477: The 150th Brigade was moved south to relieve the 201st Guards Motor Brigade in a large box with a perimeter of 20 miles (32 km), 6 miles (9.7 km) from 69th Brigade to the north and 10 miles (16 km) from the Free French to the south. By the middle of May the British were aware that Rommel intended to attack. On 26 May he launched a diversionary attack on the Gazala line, then the next day staged

4752-581: The 150th Brigade was stripped of its vehicles and the other two brigades travelled on to Iraq, crossing the Syrian Desert to Baghdad, then beyond Kirkuk, building defences on the crossings of Great Zab and Kazir rivers. In December the 69th Brigade was sent to Baalbek in Syria to relieve the 6th Australian Division which was returning to Australia. In February 1942 the 69th and 151st Brigades were recalled to Egypt. The 150th Brigade had returned to

4896-856: The 1930s, tensions built between Germany and the United Kingdom and its allies . During late 1937 and 1938, German demands for the annexation of Sudetenland in Czechoslovakia led to an international crisis . To avoid war, the British Prime Minister , Neville Chamberlain , met with the German Chancellor Adolf Hitler in September and came to the Munich Agreement , the German annexation of Sudetenland. Chamberlain had intended

5040-479: The 264 (SAS) Signals Squadron and SBS Signals Squadron to provide specialist SIGINT, secure communications , and information technology augmentation to operational units. They may be operating in counterterror roles in Iraq in the joint UK/US Task Force Black . If the unit needs to conduct offensive clandestine electronic warfare , any electronic countermeasures (ECM) devices are usually operated remotely, either by

5184-465: The 505th Field Company, Royal Engineers and the 149th Field Ambulance, was on the Northern edge of the advance, with the 28th (Māori) battalion providing the first half of their Northern flank, the second half would be formed by the 6th D.L.I performing a right wheel halfway through the advance. The infantry had a seven-mile march up to their starting lines during which time the objective were bombed by

5328-506: The 50th Division until the 23rd (Northumbrian) divisional headquarters was formed on 2 October 1939. At this point, they were transferred to the new division. The war-time deployment of the TA envisioned the divisions being deployed singly, to reinforce the regular army that had already been dispatched to the European mainland, as equipment became available. The plan envisioned the deployment of

5472-487: The 50th Division was ordered back to Alexandria by road. The division arrived on 11 May with all of the vehicles it had started out with some 2,000 miles previously, even though some had to be towed. The 50th Division was joined in the Nile Delta by the 168th (London) Infantry Brigade (1st London Irish Rifles , 1st London Scottish , 10th Royal Berkshire Regiment ), which had been detached from its parent formation,

5616-807: The 56th Division, but was completely inexperienced. There, on the Great Bitter Lake and on the Gulf of Aqaba they trained in amphibious landing techniques for the Allied invasion of Sicily (codenamed Operation Husky). The invasion, planned for 10 July, would land the United States Seventh Army to operate on the Western sector, and the British Eighth Army to operate in the Eastern sector, and had as its objectives

5760-634: The 5th and 50th Divisions were becoming hard pressed and on the night of 23–24 May received orders to withdraw to the canal line. After fighting on the canal line the 5th and 50th Divisions were withdrawn north to Ypres to fill a threatening gap developing between the Belgian Army and the BEF, after a strong German attack on the Belgians on 25 May. It was late on 27 May when the 50th Division arrived at Ypres to find their positions already being shelled and

5904-401: The 69th Brigade mopped up around Lentini, the 151st Brigade rested south of the bridge, and the inexperienced 168th Brigade was sent into its first battle at Catania airfield on the night of 17—18 July. They faced veteran German paratroopers of the 4th Parachute Regiment and Gruppe Schmalz dug-in in woods and an anti-tank ditch. Almost everything went wrong, reconnaissance was faulty, surprise

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6048-413: The 69th Brigade, the 5th East Yorkshires and 6th Green Howards (both reinforced by platoons from the 7th Green Howards) were joined by a composite D.L.I. battalion of three companies, one each from the battalions of 151st Brigade. The hasty plan called for the brigade to pass through a gap in the mine field and clear more mines to allow the 1st Armoured Division's 2nd Armoured Brigade to pass through during

6192-555: The 6th and 9th D.L.I. crossed the river in the face of machine gun fire and gradually established themselves on the northern shore of the river. By dawn the bridgehead was firmly established and the arrival across the bridge of Sherman tanks from the 3rd County of London Yeomanry on the Northern Shore brought about the German surrender. The battle had cost the 151st Brigade over 500 killed, wounded and missing, but around 300 Germans were dead and 155 had been made prisoner. While

6336-470: The 6th and 9th D.L.I. entered Catania. The remainder of the advance was through territory ideal for ambush, with terraced vineyards and high stone walls resulting in many casualties. With the end of fighting on 17 August, the division was rested and absorbed reinforcements. On 10 October the 168th Brigade returned to the 56th Division, then involved in the early stages of the Italian Campaign , and

6480-404: The 6th, 8th and 9th DLI were inextricably mixed up, many without commanders, all hungry, tired and desperately short of ammunition. The whole area was lit up by the twenty seven derelict burning Valentine tanks of the 50th RTR fought to a standstill by superior enemy armour. The 151st Brigade were withdrawn that night, the 5th East Yorkshires on the night of 23/24 March. The 6th D.L.I had started

6624-527: The Belgian Army being pushed north-eastwards away from them. The gap was covered by the side-stepping 3rd Division the next day. On that day (28 May) the Belgians surrendered , opening up a 20-mile gap south from the English Channel , which the Germans aimed to exploit rapidly . The division was now ordered to form a line east of Poperinghe, with the 3rd Division east of them up to Lizerne, this

6768-523: The DAF. Moving across the start line at 01:05hrs the infantry advanced into the smoke and dust of the barrage which reduced visibility to 50 yards. The whole night to the east was broken by hundreds of gun flashes stabbing into the darkness. The shells whistled overhead to burst with a deafening crash in the target area, and from then, until the barrage closed about three hours later, the frightful shattering noise went on continually... Every twelve yards there

6912-470: The FACs immediately helped, air-ground cooperation improved significantly with the use of remote geophysical MASINT sensors , although MASINT had not yet been coined as a term. The original sensors, a dim ancestor of today's technologies, started with air-delivered sensors under Operation Igloo White , such as air-delivered Acoubuoy and Spikebuoy acoustic sensors . These cued monitoring aircraft, which sent

7056-483: The German armoured formations or taking the long way around through the Italians to their front. Obliged to destroy all they could not take with them, the division formed mixed columns (infantry, artillery, engineers and supporting arms), which charged through bridgeheads formed by the 5th East Yorkshires and the 8th D.L.I. for their respective brigades and into the Italian lines. Leaving chaos and confusion in their wake,

7200-663: The HUMINT organization and will be systematically prepared for debriefing. They operate significantly farther forward than even the most forward friendly scouting and surveillance units. In international law, SR is not regarded as espionage if combatants are in proper uniforms, regardless of formation, according to the Hague Convention of 1907 , or the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. However, some countries do not honor these legal protections, as

7344-881: The Laotian section of the Ho Chi Minh trail , in 1961. Under CIA direction, Lao nationals were trained to observe and photograph traffic on the Trail. This produced quite limited results, and, in 1964, Project LEAPING LENA parachuted in teams of Vietnamese Montagnards led by Vietnamese Special Forces . The very limited results from LEAPING LENA led to two changes. First, Project DELTA (LEAPING LENA's replacement), used US-led SR teams. Second, these Army teams worked closely with Forward Air Controllers (FAC) which were instrumental in directing US air attacks by fighter-bombers as well as strategic bombing via BARREL ROLL in northern Laos and Operation STEEL TIGER in southern Laos. While

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7488-525: The MPs Sir Jakie Astor , the Hon. Michael Astor , Peter Baker , Sir Hugh Fraser , Maurice Macmillan (Viscount Macmillan), Sir Carol Mather and Christopher Mayhew (Lord Mayhew); Law Lord Nigel Bridge, Baron Bridge of Harwich . The journalist Sir Peregrine Worsthorne ; and Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Robert Mark . Others, such as Michael Oakeshott and John Hislop , excelled in

7632-544: The Ruweisat Ridge. Here they patrolled no-man's land and engaged with patrols from the Italian 185th Infantry Division "Folgore" and Germans. On 10 October the remainder of the division entered the line reinforced with the 1st Greek Brigade, and deployed opposite the Deir el Munassib depression, Greeks to the north, the 151st Brigade in the centre and the 69th Brigade to the south. On the night of 25 October, as part of

7776-605: The SAS efforts. On February 7, US SR teams joined British teams in the hunt for mobile Scud launchers. Open sources contain relatively little operational information about U.S. SOF activities in western Iraq. Some basic elements have emerged, however. Operating at night, Air Force MH-53J Pave Low and Army MH-47E helicopters would ferry SOF ground teams and their specially equipped four-wheel-drive vehicles from bases in Saudi Arabia to Iraq. The SOF personnel would patrol during

7920-402: The SR force or, preferably, by remote electronic warfare personnel after the SR team leaves the area. Passive MASINT sensors can be used tactically by the SR mission. SR personnel also may place unmanned MASINT sensors like seismic , magnetic , and other personnel or vehicle detectors for subsequent remote use. Remote sensing is generally understood to have begun with US operations against

8064-559: The SR team leaves the AO, the SR aspect is intelligence, but if the strikes are to be delivered and possibly corrected and evaluated by the SR team, the SR mission is fires-related. Every SR mission will collect intelligence, even incidentally. Before a mission, SR teams will usually study all available and relevant information on the area of operations (AO). On their mission, they then confirm, amplify, correct, or refute this information. Assessment, whether by clandestine SR or overt study teams,

8208-466: The South African's rearguard, the column fought through the Germans and even took prisoners. On 17 and 18 June the division was reassembled at Bir el Thalata. On 21 June Tobruk surrendered , and a new defensive line was made south of Mersa Matruh in similar brigade boxes to those at Gazala. In Mersa Martuh itself was the 10th Indian Infantry Division , south-east of the town, on an escarpment,

8352-474: The US senior commanders, Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf were opposed to using SOF ground troops to search for Iraqi mobile SCUD launchers. However, the senior British officer of the Coalition , Peter de la Billière , himself a former SAS commander, was well-disposed to use the SAS for such SR and did so. With additional Israeli pressure to send its own SOF teams into western Iraq, US Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney proposed using US SR teams to complement

8496-422: The V.C. only recently. The 5th East Yorkshires' leading company suffered over 70% casualties, and during this attack Private Eric Anderson won a posthumous V.C., killed while attending to the wounded on the battlefield. The 6th Green Howards now passed through the first wave and also took casualties He was no sooner on his feet than a single shot rang out and Coughlan...dropped dead in an instant. ... then my rage

8640-405: The West of Bournemouth, later on the North coast of Somerset , after having transferred, on 22 November, to VIII Corps . The 50th Division was first informed of an overseas move in September 1940 to North Africa , and embarkation leave was given over Christmas. After intensive exercises on the moors of Somerset and Devon, another grant of embarkation leave was given in March 1941, and on 22 April

8784-409: The Western Desert in November 1941. After training around Bir Thalata, it was ordered into Libya and saw action, capturing eight guns and a prisoner from the Afrika Korps . Directed to the Bir Hakeim position it erected wire, laid mines and dug trenches. Exchanging with the Free French in February 1942 it moved north, and rejoining the rest of the division took over a 25 miles (40 km) section of

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8928-414: The actual site. Beach measurements are often assigned to naval SR units like the United States Navy SEALs or United Kingdom's Special Boat Service . Beach and shallow water reconnaissance , immediately before an amphibious landing is considered direct support to the invasion, not SR. SR would determine if a given beach is suitable for any landing, well before the operational decision to invade. There

9072-446: The advance, the battalion took 200 prisoners and advanced across the Wadi. On the right the 151st Brigade took the front line positions in heavy fighting, but by dawn only four tanks had managed to cross the Wadi. The next day (21 March) reinforced by the 5th East Yorkshires, the brigade advanced and took three positions on the ridge and took several hundred Italian prisoners. More tanks had crossed over but most of them were armed only with

9216-421: The agreement to lead to further peaceful resolution of differences, but relations between both countries soon deteriorated. On 15 March 1939, Germany breached the terms of the agreement by invading and occupying the remnants of the Czech state . On 29 March, the British Secretary of State for War Leslie Hore-Belisha announced plans to increase the Territorial Army (TA) from 130,000 men to 340,000, doubling

9360-402: The arms of the division. One such operation, Fullsize , launched at the end of March consisted of three columns and was commanded by Brigadier John Nichols , commander of the 151st Brigade, who would later command the 50th Division. This ranged up to 30 miles (48 km) from Gazala to raid Luftwaffe landing grounds, in order to distract them from a Malta bound convoy . At the end of April

9504-420: The attack against the Mareth Line was planned for the night of 19–20 March 1943. The Mareth Line was made up of a series of fortified positions, consisting of a number of pillboxes surrounded by wire and trenches, just behind the bank of the Wadi Zigzaou, backed up by a second line of such positions on a ridge to the rear. The 69th Brigade had taken the approaches to the Wadi on preceding nights, they were to attack

9648-519: The attacking forces while the British 1st and 7th Armoured Divisions attacked them in turn. Close by to the north was the 1st South African Division , isolated to the south were the Free French. Other boxes were sited to the rear of the main line, such as the Knightsbridge Box . Patrols began, with the aims of gathering intelligence and disrupting German and Italian operations. These ranged in size from two to three platoons of infantry and anti tank guns, to battalion sized formations containing most of

9792-468: The battalion. Communication was restored only when a War Office observer riding a bicycle crossed the bridge to 'observe' the battle and was dispatched back by the C.O. to bring the rest of the battalion forward. The arrival of the remaining two companies started a fierce battle in the vineyard, and during the day the battalion fought off a number of counter-attacks, but was slowly pushed back. Early on 17 July, supported by division and XIII Corps artillery,

9936-456: The battle was over, the tanks of the Yeomanry having got past the anti-tank ditch, and four hours later the 8th Armoured Brigade pushed on past the Wadi. The brigade had overrun parts of the Italian La Spezia Division . The Eighth Army's attack north along the eastern coast of Tunisia, and the First Army's advance from the west, led eventually to the surrender of Axis forces in North Africa, on 13 May 1943, with almost 250,000 men taken prisoner,

10080-401: The battle with only 300 men, and was now reduced to 65 uninjured, and the other battalions were in a similar state. The 2nd New Zealand Division's flanking attack began on 26 March and was to force an Axis withdrawal. For the next several days the division was employed in tidying the battle-field and burying the dead. On 2 April the division was told to supply a brigade for the coming battle at

10224-427: The battle. After two days, with the Free French holding out at Bir Hakeim, Rommel's supply situation was becoming desperate due to the long detour to the south, an increasing toll of tanks was being taken by the Desert Air Force (DAF). Some supplies reached Rommel through the weakly held mine fields north and south of the 150th Brigade box, but by 31 May the situation was again serious, such that General Fritz Bayerlein

10368-522: The beach on 1 June, the 151st Brigade was informed it may be used in a diversionary attack to cover the evacuation and formed two columns, but this became unnecessary. That night the 50th Division was evacuated from the beaches (150th Brigade, RASC and gunners ) and the Mole (151st Brigade and others), with Lieutenant-General Brooke having estimated its strength on 30 May at 2,400 men. While in Britain

10512-441: The bombardment, others fought back, with all three battalions coming under fire. Lines through the mines were cleared behind the advance, and by dawn, having reached their objective the infantry dug in, and were in place to witness the destruction of the 9th Armoured Brigade as it charged dug in German guns. Relieved in the early hours of 3 November, the brigade had suffered almost 400 casualties and taken more than 400 prisoners. In

10656-664: The capture of Yeongheungdo , an island in the mouth of the harbor before the Battle of Inchon , by a joint CIA/military team led by Navy LT Eugene Clark is much more in the SR/DA realm. Clark apparently led numerous SR and DA operations during the Korean War, some of which may still be classified. Basic photography and sketching is usually a skill for any individual performing an SR mission. More advanced photographic technique may require additional training or attaching specialists to

10800-532: The column ambushed defensive posts and collected several thousand Italian prisoners, including the HQ of the Brescia Division . The 151st Brigade rejoined the division on 12 November. The division now went into reserve as part of X Corps , and was grouped around El Adem on the Gazala battlefield where it received new anti-tank and anti-aircraft regiments and commenced intensive training. Various formations of

10944-492: The columns headed further south around the routes the Germans took in their advance, then east and headed for Fort Maddelena on the Egyptian frontier. The enemy in the bridgeheads were Italian stiffened by a few German gunners. They were very much taken by surprise. It was late at night before they realised that a whole division was passing straight through their lines. Some vehicles went up on mines, others were shot-up, but on

11088-463: The command of the 2nd New Zealand Division, were to advance 4,000 yards to Tel el Aqqaqir on the Rahman Track, supported by tanks of 8th and 50th Royal Tank Regiments . Following them would be the 9th Armoured Brigade . The advance would be supported by a First World War style creeping barrage provided by 13 field regiments and two medium regiments of artillery. The 151st Brigade, supported by

11232-670: The data to a processing center in Thailand, from which target information was sent to the DELTA teams. Closer to today's SR-emplaced sensors was the Mini-Seismic Intrusion Detector (MINISID). Unlike other sensors employed along the trail, it was specifically designed to be hand delivered and implanted. The MINISID and its smaller version the MICROSID were personnel detection devices often used in combination with

11376-676: The day was also disrupted, 168th Brigade was scheduled to land on D+3. Over the next few days the division lost most of its motor transport, bombed by the Luftwaffe while still on board ship. Forced to march, the division was allocated the minor inland road north and urged forward by the GOC, Major-General Kirkman, fought the German Battlegroup Schmalz and the Italian Napoli Division . On 13 July contact

11520-496: The defeat of the remaining British armour on 13 June, the remaining Gazala boxes realised they were now almost cut off. On 14 June they received orders to withdraw. The coast road leading to the east could only hold one division while it was being held open by the remains of the British armour and the El Adem box, and this was allocated to the South Africans. The 50th Division was left with the alternatives of fighting east, through

11664-445: The depth and bottom characteristics of waters are readily available as commercial fishing equipment or more sophisticated devices specific to military naval operations. Remote-viewing MASINT sensors to determine the trafficability of a beach are experimental. Sometimes, simple observation or use of a penetrometer or weighted cone that measures how deeply weights will sink into the surface are needed. These however have to be done at

11808-575: The desired area, and the nature of the mission. In US Army doctrine, there are five basic factors: Special forces units that perform SR are usually polyvalent, so SR missions may be intelligence gathering in support of another function, such as counter-insurgency , foreign internal defense (FID), guerrilla / unconventional warfare (UW), or direct action (DA). Other missions may deal with locating targets and planning, guiding, and evaluating attacks against them . Target analysis could go in either place. If air or missile strikes are delivered after

11952-590: The division HQ and 150th Brigade Group sailed from Liverpool. The remainder of the division, now commanded by Major-General William Ramsden , sailed from Glasgow on 23 May. While in the North Atlantic the majority of the escorts of the Glasgow convoy were diverted away to search for the Bismarck leaving only the cruiser HMS Exeter as the convoy's escort. In June the division landed at Port Tewfik, where

12096-404: The division from three to two brigades along with a similar reduction in artillery. French wrote that the motor division "matched that of the German army's motorized and light divisions. But there the similarities ended." German motorized divisions contained three brigades and were as fully equipped as a regular infantry division, while the smaller light divisions contained a tank battalion. Whereas

12240-628: The division headed towards Brussels and took up positions on the river Dender, only to end up part of the Allied withdrawal. By 19 May, it was on Vimy ridge, north of Arras . It had become known to the Allies that the German Army's southern spearheads had pierced the Peronne – Cambrai gap and were threatening Boulogne and Calais , cutting the BEF's lines of communication and separating it from

12384-507: The division made good its losses with new recruits and convalescents, and was converted into a three brigade infantry division with the permanent addition, of the 69th Infantry Brigade group, at the end of June. This comprised the 5th East Yorkshire Regiment , 6th and 7th Green Howards with supporting artillery and engineers, from the now disbanded 23rd (Northumbrian) Division, which had been badly mauled in France. It became part of V Corps on anti-invasion duty, stationed initially in and to

12528-608: The division was part of the Territorial Army (TA) and the two Ts in the divisional insignia represent the two 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

12672-604: The division were detached, transport platoons to carry supplies forward from Tobruk, the engineers to improve the docks and roads around Sirte and the anti-aircraft regiment to protect newly captured airfields. The division, still with only two infantry brigades, returned to the front line, where it joined Leese's XXX Corps, in mid-March 1943, when the Eighth Army reached the Mareth Line in Tunisia . Operation Pugilist,

12816-451: The division, while manning an anti-tank gun . However, most of the battalion was overrun, but the attack was not pressed further due to the Germans own heavy casualties. That night a large raid by the 6th and 8th D.L.I. and elements of the 5th Indian Division, was intended to disrupt German and Italian lines of communication south of the escarpment, but due to poor coordination succeeded in causing as much confusion to their own columns as to

12960-433: The divisional artillery as all available transport was being used to move Eighth Army supplies. Fire support was to come from the 51st (Highland) Division's artillery, the infantry of which were to attack on their right, while the 4th Indian Division attacked on their left. In the early morning of 6 April, the attack achieved its early objectives but then came under heavy fire which killed Lieutenant Colonel Seagrim, who had won

13104-427: The enemy. The same night the 5th East Yorkshires was heavily engaged with the Germans. On the night of 28 June, with the division nearly surrounded, it was ordered to break out. Unlike the Gazala breakout, the battalion columns now faced German armour, and the ground was broken by steep-sided Wadis . The 8th D.L.I. was ambushed while driving out of a wadi and lost its D Company. The original orders had specified Fuka as

13248-709: The enemy. These later merged in 1940 with the propaganda unit Department EH to form the basis of the Special Operations Executive (SOE), which would conduct irregular warfare operations in occupied Europe . In 1941, during the North African Campaign volunteers from Allies formed, under the auspices of the British Army, the Long Range Desert Group for reconnaissance and raiding behind Italian lines and

13392-428: The fields of academia or athletics. Special reconnaissance In intelligence terms, SR is a human intelligence (HUMINT) collection discipline. Its operational control is likely to be inside a compartmented cell of the HUMINT, or possibly the operations, staff functions. Since such personnel are trained for intelligence collection as well as other missions, they will usually maintain clandestine communications to

13536-403: The fleet by secure radio which was still vulnerable to SIGINT which could locate their OPs. No common understanding of the threat of Argentine direction finding existed, and different teams developed individual solutions. The value of the information and the stress on the SR teams were tremendous. Their activities helped the force, limited in its sensors, develop an accurate operational picture of

13680-540: The front line. On the night of 28 October, the 151st Brigade was transferred north to join XXX Corps , and take part in Operation Supercharge . This operation began on the night of 31 October with an Australian attack keeping pressure on the Germans near the coast. Further south, timed for the early morning of 1 November, then delayed for 24 hours, the 151st Brigade with the 152nd Brigade , both under

13824-470: The increasingly ineffective 2-pounder gun. The passage of these tanks had damaged the Wadi crossing and only a few anti-tank guns could be moved across. On 22 March, with the DAF grounded by rain, the Germans counterattacked with the 15th Panzer Division with supporting artillery and infantry. By evening a bloody and desperate battle was being fought out west of the Wadi Zigzaou, and slowly but surely

13968-617: The infantry were being driven back to the Wadi edge, until by midnight except for the East Yorkshire Regiment holding out in [a fortified position on the bank of the Wadi] there was no depth whatever in the bridgehead. Though tremendous casualties had been inflicted by the supporting artillery ... they had failed to stop the enemy attack. Later even this support flagged as wireless sets with the forward troops were gradually knocked out or failed due to exhausted batteries. The men of

14112-466: The inter-war period resulted in the three kinds of divisions by the end of the 1930s: the infantry division, the mobile division (later called the armoured division), and the motor division. Historian David French wrote "The main role of the infantry ... was to break into the enemy's defensive position." This would then be exploited by the Mobile division, followed by the motor divisions that would "carry out

14256-512: The magnetic intrusion detector (MAGID). Combining sensors in this way improved the ability of individual sensors to detect targets and reduced false alarms. Today's AN/GSQ-187 Improved Remote Battlefield Sensor System (I-REMBASS) is a passive acoustic sensor which, with other MASINT sensors, detects vehicles and humans on a battlefield. It is routine for SR units to emplace such sensors both for regional monitoring by higher headquarters' remote sensing centers, as well as for tactical intelligence during

14400-460: The main French armies. A plan by French General Maxime Weygand to close this gap between the French and British forces included Frankforce (after Major-General Harold Franklyn , GOC of the 5th Division ), consisting of the 5th and 50th Divisions and the 1st Army Tank Brigade attacking southward, and French divisions attacking northward from around Cambrai. Instead of divisions, the attack

14544-413: The main conventional force landings. Each man carried equipment needed for up to 25 days due to resupply limitations (cf. the 7-day limits of conventional LRS patrols discussed above). These patrols surveyed major centers of enemy activity. The patrols reconnoitered Argentinian positions at night, and then due to the lack of cover moved to distant observation posts (OPs). Information gathered was relayed to

14688-421: The meeting point for the division, but this was in enemy hands, and some columns which had not been informed of this were captured. The 50th Division had suffered over 9,000 casualties since the start of the Gazala battle, lost much of its equipment and what remained was worn out. The division was sent into Mareopolis, south-west of Alexandria , to refit. The average strength of the remaining infantry battalions

14832-462: The mission, as they are an improvement over tripwires and other improvised warnings. Passive acoustic sensors provide additional measurements that can be compared with signatures and used to complement other sensors. For example, a ground search radar may not be able to differentiate between a tank and a truck moving at the same speed but adding acoustic information may quickly help differentiate them. Capture of enemy equipment for TECHINT analysis

14976-422: The motor division, while being fully motorized and capable of transporting all their infantry, contained no tanks and was "otherwise much weaker than normal infantry divisions" or their German counterparts. Following this, some of the division's infantry battalions were converted to anti-aircraft regiments, and the entire 149th Brigade was converted into divisional support units for other formations. Throughout

15120-466: The next line at Wadi Akarit, which runs from the sea to impassable salt marshes of the Chott el Fejej , while the Germans were distracted by the advance of Lieutenant General George S. Patton 's U.S. II Corps to the west. The 69th Brigade was sent forward with the division machine gunners and a squadron of tanks from the 3rd County of London Yeomanry (Sharpshooters) , but they were not to be supported by

15264-465: The night and hide during the day. When targets were discovered, Air Force Combat Control Teams attached to the SR teams would communicate these targets over secure radios to AWACS . 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,

15408-485: The night of 21–22 July. The 5th East Yorkshires and the composite D.L.I. battalion reached their objectives, the Germans having allowed them to pass through their lines. Surrounded, then shelled and mortared for two days, with the supporting armour unable to advance, they were overrun with only small numbers escaping. In late July and August the division was part of the Northern Delta Force, together with

15552-472: The number of divisions. The plan was for the existing divisions to recruit over their establishments and then form Second Line divisions from small cadres that could be built upon. This was aided by an increase in pay for territorials, the removal of restrictions on promotion that had been a major hindrance to recruiting during the preceding years, the construction of better quality barracks and an increase in supper-time rations. The 23rd (Northumbrian) Division

15696-407: The operational control of the SR team, could use additional sensors including portable acoustic and electro-optical systems . If there is a ground SIGINT requirement deep behind enemy lines, an appropriate technical detachment may be attached to the SR element. For SIGINT operations, the basic augmentation to United States Marine Corps Force Reconnaissance (Force Recon) is a 6-man detachment from

15840-739: The opposition. SR units can engage targets of opportunity, but current doctrine emphasizes avoiding direct engagement, concentrating instead on directing air (e.g., GAPS (Ground-Aided Precision Strikes) and CAS (Close Air Support)), artillery, and other heavy fire support onto targets. The doctrine of bringing increasingly more accurate and potent firepower has evolved significantly since the early days of Vietnam. SR units are trained in target analysis which combines both engineer reconnaissance and special forces assessment to identify targets for subsequent attack by fire support, conventional units, or special operations (i.e., direct action or unconventional warfare behind enemy lines). They evaluate targets using

15984-413: The other brigades of the division, noting the flow of supplies in front of them, mounted vigorous patrols to disrupt and steal these supplies. Particularly prized was fresh water from the wells at Derna to supplement their own meagre ration, all other types of stores and weapons were taken as well as prisoners. This commerce raiding continued until, after the withdrawal of the Free French on 10 June and

16128-597: The planned objective of Wancourt before running into opposition from the infantry units of Generalmajor Erwin Rommel 's 7th Panzer Division . French tanks and troop carriers enabled British soldiers to evacuate Warlus, and the carriers of the 9th Durham Light Infantry (in reserve) helped those in Duisans withdraw to their former positions that night. Next day the Germans regrouped and continued their advance; Frankforce had taken around 400 German prisoners and inflicted

16272-421: The port of Syracuse and the airfields inland. An airborne operation was to attempt to capture the bridges and waterways behind Syracuse. The division was to land on a one brigade front (151st Brigade) south of Cap Murro Di Porco with the 5th Division to their right (north). High winds scattered both seaborne and airborne landings, but were able to concentrate and advance. The landing of the 69th Brigade later in

16416-440: The rapid consolidation of the ground captured by the Mobile divisions" therefore "transform[ing] the 'break-in' into a 'break-through." As a result, in 1938, the army decided to create six such Motor Divisions from Territorial Army units. Only three infantry divisions were converted into motor divisions prior to the war, this included the 50th alongside the 55th (West Lancashire) and the 1st London . The reform intended to reduce

16560-478: The south, the remainder of the division, reinforced with the 2nd Free French Brigade, was tasked with clearing the mine fields between the Ruweiiat Ridge and the Rahman Track and capturing the defences around a point called 'Fortress A'. On 7 November the division was ordered to form a mobile brigade column and strike West. With all division vehicles given to the 69th Brigade and reinforced with anti-tank guns

16704-399: The southern diversionary attacks, the 69th Brigade, 5th East Yorkshires and 6th Green Howards, advanced to clear the mine fields, and seize positions. After gaining nearly all of the first objectives, the attacking battalions came up against increasing numbers of anti-personnel mines, barbed wire and retaliatory mortar fire. After losing over 200 casualties, the battalions were withdrawn back to

16848-462: The supporting tanks being engaged by 88mm guns . An attack by the 8th Battalion D.L.I. was delayed, allowing them to learn of a ford upstream of the bridge from one of the paratroopers. Before dawn on 16 July two companies of the battalion achieved surprise and established themselves across the Catania road some 200 yards north of the bridge, but in doing so lost all their means to summon the rest of

16992-614: The team must carry, movement distance to the objective area, and resupply availability. LRS teams normally operate up to seven days without resupply depending on terrain and weather. SR units are well armed, since they may have to defend themselves if they are detected and their exfiltration support will need time to reach them. During the 1991 Gulf War , British SAS and United States Army and Air Force Special Operations Forces (AFSOC) units were originally sent behind enemy lines to find mobile Iraqi Scud tactical ballistic missile launchers and direct airstrikes onto them . When air support

17136-593: The whole TA in waves, as divisions completed their training. The final divisions would not be transported to France until a year had elapsed from the outbreak of war. In October, the division was concentrated in the Cotswolds to train for overseas service, which continued into the winter. In January 1940, the division was moved to France to join the British Expeditionary Force (BEF). The division disembarked at Cherbourg on 19 January 1940, and

17280-479: The whole we had very few casualties and both attacking battalions did their jobs successfully. The infantry went in with the bayonet and the Italians departed, often leaving all their arms and equipment lying about in the trenches. After having been posted behind the 69th Brigade box, and having seen the Italians alerted to the breakout, the 9th D.L.I., and a party from the 6th, took the coastal route . Attacked by German artillery and infantry and accidentally shelled by

17424-410: Was 300 men (less than 50%), and the division artillery had only 30 guns (out of 72) and all other services had heavy losses. By mid-July the infantry had been reinforced to 400–500 men per battalion and training had begun. In late July the division, now commanded by Major-General John Nichols after Ramsden was promoted, was ordered to provide troops for an attack on Mitieriya Ridge, under the command of

17568-456: Was a shell hole. It was well organized. On each flank – on the battalion flanks – they had Bofors guns firing tracer every two or three minutes so that you could keep on line. The barrage was going for about two minutes then they'd drop two or three smoke bombs – they were a bloody nuisance... But when they dropped you knew the barrage was lifting. You just moved in. In the advance through the German trenches and gun lines, some had been stunned by

17712-644: Was absorbed into the Royal Armoured Corps and with it the Phantom GHQ Liaison Regiment. Phantom was disbanded in 1945 and then reborn as the Army Phantom Signals Regiment ( Princess Louise's Kensington Regiment ) until 1960, when it was clear that technology provided for alternative solutions. During Operation Overlord , in June 1944, many patrols from Phantom came to Normandy on D+1. Their task

17856-476: Was an after-the-action rumor, as Cox was a technician. The true radar expert, Don Preist, could not be captured as he stayed offshore but was in communications with the raiders. Preist also had ELINT equipment to gain information on the radar. A mixture of SR, DA, and seizing opportunities characterized the Sayeret Matkal's Operation Rooster 53 , originally planned as a mission to locate and disable

18000-651: Was assigned to II Corps . By March, the division was at work preparing the defences in the Lille—Loos area. When the German attack began on 10 May, the British and French enacted their Dyle Plan and advanced to the River Dyle in Belgium . The next day, the 25th Infantry Brigade and other supporting units were added to the division while it was in reserve on the Belgian border. It was ordered to move on 16 May, and

18144-408: Was attached to this SR unit. Sometimes technical specialists without SR training have taken their first parachute jump on TECHINT-oriented SR missions. Cox instructed the team in what to take and, if it could not be moved, what to photograph. Cox had significant knowledge of British radar, and conflicting reports say that the force was under orders to kill him rather than let him be captured. This likely

18288-496: Was considering surrender. Rommel had turned his attention to the 150th Brigade box as a means to shorten his lines of communication and began attacking it on 29 May from the rear, using parts of 15th Panzer , Trieste Motorised and 90th Light Divisions , supported by heavy bombing attacks. The box was gradually reduced over a stubborn defence, and it was overrun by noon on 1 June, with the capture of all three infantry battalions and attached artillery and engineers. During this time

18432-771: Was delayed, however, the patrols might attack key Scud system elements with their own weapons and explosives. While there are obvious risks to doing so, SR-trained units can operate out of uniform. They may use motorcycles, four-wheel-drive vehicles, or multiple helicopter lifts in their area of operations, or have mountaineering or combat swimming capability. Most SR units are trained in advanced helicopter movement and at least basic parachuting; some SR will have HAHO and HALO advanced parachute capability. SR will have more organic support capabilities, including long-range communications, possibly signals intelligence , and other means of collecting technical intelligence, and usually at least one skilled medical technician whose proficiency

18576-489: Was done by the morning of 29 May, forming the southern edge of the Dunkirk corridor. In contact with the Germans from the start the 50th Division was forced back and by late 30 May was in the eastern end of the Dunkirk perimeter. The division was reinforced by some remnants from the 23rd (Northumbrian) Division on 31 May, which were needed as the Germans continued to attack and shell the 50th Division's positions. Withdrawn to

18720-570: Was established with the 51st (Highland) Division at Palazzolo. Operation Fustian was intended to swiftly capture the bridges along the coast of the Catanian plain by coup de main using No. 3 Commando and the 1st Parachute Brigade of the 1st Airborne Division , they would then be relieved by troops of the 50th Division. On the night of 13–14 July the British Commandos seized the bridge of Ponti di Malati North of Lentini , and

18864-546: Was intended to have a key intelligence role following any Nazi invasion of Britain. In January 1941, the Reconnaissance Corps was established and Phantom was re-named GHQ Liaison Regiment to avoid confusion. Phantom recruited men with various talents, linguists, drivers and mechanics – and undertook rigorous training in wireless communication and cipher. In January 1944, the Reconnaissance Corps

19008-471: Was introduced. At that time 34,500 militiamen, all aged 20, were conscripted into the regular army, initially to be trained for six months before being deployed to the forming second line units. The process varied widely in the TA divisions. Some were ready in weeks while others had made little progress by the time the Second World War began. The division, along with most of the rest of the TA,

19152-507: Was lost, the advance was caught by enfilade fire and some units were caught by their own artillery fire. The brigade was forced to withdraw. Directed by enemy observers in these positions, long range artillery destroyed the Primisole bridge but left two bailey bridges intact. The 50th Division remained in these positions for the next two weeks. On 4 August the Germans blew up ammunition dumps on Catania airfield and withdrew, and on 5 August

19296-504: Was made by two battalion sized columns, with many tanks of the armoured units already unserviceable. Of the 5th Infantry Division's two brigades, one had been sent to hold the line of the river Scarpe to the east of Arras, together with the 150th Brigade of the 50th Division, while the other was in reserve. The two columns comprised the 6th and 8th Battalions of the Durham Light Infantry (D.L.I.) of 151st Brigade supporting

19440-519: Was mobilised on 1 September 1939, the day the German Army invaded Poland . From the new units it created in March, the 50th Division created the 69th Infantry Brigade as a Second Line duplicate of the 150th Infantry Brigade , and the 70th Infantry Brigade as a Second Line duplicate of the 151st Infantry Brigade . These brigades had been created by the outbreak of the war and were administered by

19584-592: Was one of two British divisions (the other being the 3rd Infantry ) 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 . In 1921, the Territorial Force was reconstituted as the Territorial Army following the passage of

19728-401: Was planned that the 4th Indian Division would then pass through and continue the attack, while the 2nd New Zealand Division made a 'left hook'. The attack began on the night of 20—21 March, on the left, Lieutenant Colonel Derek Anthony Seagrim , Commanding Officer (C.O.) of the 7th Green Howards, was awarded the V.C. in clearing two machine gun posts on 'the Bastion' which briefly held up

19872-539: Was sent as a military observer to the No 3 British Air Mission and subsequently changed the method of operations to focus upon greater use of wireless communications and mobility to provide assessment from the front line. 'Phantom' the collective codename for these missions was chosen by themselves and later became an official term. After the Dunkirk evacuation , the unit was re-formed as No 1 GHQ Reconnaissance Unit. As such, it

20016-425: Was the 50th Division with a brigade of the 5th Indian Division south of them. The Germans attacked on 27 June and passed around the escarpment to the north and south. North of the 151st lay the coast road and the attack fell on the brigade and heavily on the 9th D.L.I. on the left flank. During the attack Private Adam Wakenshaw was to win a posthumous Victoria Cross (VC), the first of four to be awarded to members of

20160-750: Was the case with the Nazi " Commando Order " of World War II , which was held to be illegal at the Nuremberg Trials . While SR has been a function of armies since ancient times, specialized units with this task date from the lead-up to World War II. In 1938, the British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) and the War Office both set up special research departments: Section D and "Military Intelligence (Research)" to investigate possible sabotage and other ways to attack

20304-692: Was to be created as a Second Line unit, a duplicate of the 50th (Northumbrian). Despite the intention for the army to grow, the programme was complicated by a lack of central guidance on the expansion and duplication process and issues regarding the lack of facilities, equipment and instructors. It had been envisioned by the War Office that the duplicating process and recruiting the required numbers of men would take no more than six months. The 50th (Northumbrian) Motor Division started this process in March, creating new units based around an initial cadre of just 25 officers and men. In April, limited conscription

20448-458: Was to go around day and night to find all the British, Canadian and American units they could, marking their locations on a map, and passing the information to the main HQ. During Operation Market Garden , in September 1944, the only communication between the surrounded airborne troops at Arnhem and headquarters was via a Phantom patrol. This included the famous, desperate, message from Major-General Roy Urquhart that "... unless physical contact

20592-418: Was to provide collection, passage and dissemination of contemporaneous information on the progress of battle to corps HQ. For Operation Overlord , one patrol was assigned to each divisional HQ of I and XXX Corps to land with main divisional HQ. Thus on D-Day , three Patrols (5, 8 & 14) landed with the 3rd British, 50th Northumbrian and 3rd Canadian Divisions . Some patrols undertook parachute drops with

20736-435: Was up ... Angrily, I grabbed poor Coughlan's machine gun ... When we were about ten yards away we had reached the top of the slit trench and we killed any of the survivors, five of them cowering in the bottom of the trench. It was no time for pussy footing: we were consumed with rage and had to kill them to pay for our fallen pal. We were so intoxicated, we could not hold back, given the chance they would have killed us. By 11:00

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