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114-598: 1–2 Militia and Special Reserve battalions 1–4 Territorial and Volunteer battalions The Suffolk Regiment was an infantry regiment of the line in the British Army with a history dating back to 1685. It saw service for three centuries, participating in many wars and conflicts, including the First and Second World Wars , before being amalgamated with the Royal Norfolk Regiment to form

228-610: A French expedition ship Le Naturaliste under Jacques Hamelin explored the area around French Island , as part of the Baudin expedition to Australia . It named the island Ile des Français , since Anglicised as French Island. On 26 April 1802, Flinders, unaware of Murray's visit, entered Port Phillip in Investigator , climbed Arthur's Seat, rowed to Mornington and across to the Bellarine Peninsula and climbed

342-476: A certain quantity of gum was found. ... if we may judge from the number of their fires and other marks this part of the country is not thin of inhabitants. Their spears are of various kinds and all of them more dangerous than any I have yet seen." Three weeks later the French explorer Nicolas Baudin sailed through the strait from east to west and was the first to properly survey the coast to the west. In April 1802,

456-571: A child, 307 convicts, 17 convicts' wives, and 7 children. One of the children was the eleven-year-old John Pascoe Fawkner , later a founder of Melbourne, who accompanied his convicted father and mother. The party entered Port Phillip on 9 October 1803 and chose a site at Sullivan Bay near present-day Sorrento . Collins was soon disappointed with the area. Reports from exploring parties led by Lieutenant James Tuckey and surveyor George Harris described strong currents, sandy soil, poor timber, swampy land and scarce fresh water. They also clashed with

570-505: A separate colony on 1 July 1851. The British Act of Parliament separating Port Phillip District from New South Wales, and naming the new colony "Victoria" (after Queen Victoria) and providing it with a Constitution, was signed by Queen Victoria on 5 August 1850. Enabling legislation was passed by the New South Wales Legislative Council to take effect on 1 July 1851. This was formally the founding moment of

684-579: A time prior to the arrival of the Hentys. The expedition down the Murray River by Charles Sturt in 1830 again aroused interest in settlement in the south. In April 1833 Edward Henty , returning to Van Diemen's Land from Spencer Gulf called in to Portland for a cargo of oil, and was much impressed. In November 1834 John Hart , another sailor, reported favourably in Launceston on Western Port. It

798-863: Is evident in the Budj Bim heritage areas . At the Keilor Archaeological Site a human hearth excavated in 1971 was radiocarbon-dated to about 31,000 years BP , making Keilor one of the earliest sites of human habitation in Australia. A cranium found at the site has been dated at between 12,000 and 14,700 years BP . Archaeological sites in Tasmania and on the Bass Strait Islands have been dated to between 20,000 – 35,000 years ago, when sea levels were 130 metres below present level allowing Aboriginal people to move across

912-451: Is now Braybrook , and then the eastern fresh-water branch (the Yarra ) to Dights Falls . They had a friendly meeting with local Aboriginal people and returned to their ship via Corio Bay. They concluded that the best site for a settlement would be on the freshwater at the northern head of the bay, but were unenthusiastic about the soil and its agricultural potential. With Britain involved in

1026-676: The 101st Brigade in 34th Division in January 1916 also for action on the Western Front. Corporal Sidney James Day won the VC for his actions at Hargicourt on 26 August 1917. The battalion ended the war as part of 61st (2nd South Midland) Division . The 12th (Service) Battalion (East Anglia) was a Bantam battalion formed at Bury St Edmunds in 1915. It landed at Le Havre as part of the 121st Brigade in 40th Division in June 1916. In 1918 it

1140-536: The 1st East Anglian Regiment (Royal Norfolk and Suffolk) in 1959 which, in 1964, was further amalgamated with the 2nd East Anglian Regiment (Duchess of Gloucester's Own Royal Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire) , the 3rd East Anglian Regiment (16th/44th Foot) and the Royal Leicestershire Regiment to create the present Royal Anglian Regiment . In 1685, the Duke of Norfolk's Regiment of Foot

1254-661: The 7th Division . After the Napoleonic Wars, the Militia fell into disuse, although regimental colonels and adjutants continued to appear in the Army List . Whilst muster rolls were still prepared during the 1820s, the element of compulsion was abandoned. For example, the City Of York Militia & Muster Rolls run to 1829. They used a pre-printed form with a printer's date of Sept 1828. The Militia

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1368-643: The 84th Brigade in the 28th Division in January 1915 for service on the Western Front and then transferred to Egypt on 24 October 1915. It suffered some 400 casualties at the Second Battle of Ypres in May 1915. The 2nd Battalion landed at landed at Le Havre as part of the 14th Brigade in 5th Division in August 1914. The value of the 2nd Battalion's 20 years of peacetime training was exemplified at

1482-483: The Battle of Le Cateau on 26 August 1914, a mere 23 days since Britain had declared war on Germany. In this action the 2nd Battalion undertook a fierce rear-guard defence out-manned and out-gunned by superior numbers of enemy. The 2nd Battalion held their defensive position despite losing their commanding officer, Lt. Col. C.A.H. Brett DSO, at the commencement of the action and their second in command, Maj. E.C. Doughty, who

1596-814: The Battle of Medjez-el Bab in the Tunisia Campaign in April 1943. After the end of the fighting in North Africa the regiment remained there until April 1944 when, with the rest of the brigade, it landed at Naples , Italy , destined for service in the Italian campaign , where they fought in Operation Diadem , where the Allies finally broke out of the Gustav Line . 142 RAC was present when

1710-756: The British Army , in the Army Reserve . These are the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers (formed in 1539) and the Jersey Field Squadron (The Royal Militia Island of Jersey) (formed in 1337). History of Victoria The history of Victoria refers to the history of the Australian state of Victoria and the area's preceding Indigenous and British colonial societies. Before British colonisation of Australia , many Aboriginal peoples lived in

1824-515: The French revolutionary wars , Governor King was concerned that Bass Strait could harbour enemy raiders, and that in peace time it could provide an important trade route and trading base. The appearance of Baudin's ships served to reinforce the concern that France was interested in the area. King was also looking for an alternative settlement for the increasing number of convicts in Sydney and to reduce

1938-584: The Furneaux Group of islands, also thought it might be a strait. To clear up the question, Governor John Hunter sent George Bass to explore thoroughly the coast in a whaleboat. After reaching Wilsons Promontory and Western Port in January 1798 bad weather and lack of provisions forced him to return to Sydney. Bass returned with Matthew Flinders in December 1798 in Norfolk and sailed through

2052-761: The Hillman Fortress on D-Day itself. They served with the 3rd Infantry Division throughout the entire North West Europe Campaign from D-Day to Victory in Europe Day in 1945. By the end of the war the 1st Battalion had lost 215 men killed in action. The 2nd Battalion of the Suffolk Regiment was serving in India at the outbreak of the Second World War, spending the early years of the war mainly deployed on internal security duties. In 1943

2166-533: The Quetta Division of the British Army of India , from a military effectiveness point of view, in a six-day test. This test saw the men under arms for over 12 hours a day conducting a wide selection of military manoeuvres, including bridge building, retreats under fire, forced marches and defending ground and fixed fortifications. In 1908, the Militia and Volunteers were reorganised nationally, with

2280-783: The Second Boer War : it assaulted a hill near Colesberg in January 1900 and suffered many casualties including the commanding officer. By contrast between 1895 and 1914, the 2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment was not involved in hostilities. It was stationed for the majority of the time in India. Garrison postings during this period include; Secunderabad (India) 1895, Rangoon and the Andaman Islands ( Burma ) 1896 to 1899, Quetta ( North West Frontier ) 1899 to 1902, Karachi and Hyderabad (Northern India, now Pakistan) 1902 to 1905, Madras (India) 1905 to 1907, Aden 1907, returning to England in 1908. During its service in India

2394-523: The Secretary of State changed the destination to Port Phillip. On 24 April 1803 HMS Calcutta , commanded by Captain Daniel Woodriff , with Lieutenant-Colonel David Collins as commander of the expedition, left England accompanied by the store-ship Ocean . The expedition consisted of 402 people: 5 Government officials, 9 officers of marines, 2 drummers, and 39 privates, 5 soldiers' wives, and

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2508-795: The Siege of Limerick in 1690. After the October 1691 Treaty of Limerick , it returned to England before being transferred to Flanders . When the Nine Years' War ended with the 1697 Treaty of Ryswick , the regiment was saved from disbandment by becoming part of the Irish establishment , then spent the War of the Spanish Succession in Jamaica . Returning to Flanders in 1742 during the War of

2622-887: The Siege of Seringapatam in April 1799 during the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War . It also took part in the Invasion of Île Bonaparte in July 1810 and the Invasion of Isle de France in November 1810 during the Napoleonic Wars . While garrisoning the Australian Colony of Victoria in 1854, detachments from the regiment, the 40th Regiment of Foot and colonial police, suppressed the Eureka Rebellion , by gold prospectors at Ballarat . There

2736-606: The Wathaurung people near Corio Bay, killing their leader – the first Aborigines known to have been killed by settlers in Victoria. Collins reported his criticisms to Governor King, who supported him and recommended moving the settlement. On 18 December Calcutta departed for Port Jackson , and the party was prepared for evacuation. This was achieved in two voyages of Ocean in January and May 1804, assisted by HMS  Lady Nelson which had been surveying Port Dalrymple on

2850-560: The You Yangs . In January 1803 Acting-Lieutenant Charles Robbins in the schooner HMS  Cumberland sailed right around Port Phillip. With him were acting surveyor-general Charles Grimes , Mr James Meehan and gardener James Fleming. At the head of the bay they found a river and followed it upstream where it soon divided. They followed the western branch and named it the Saltwater River (the present Maribyrnong ) to what

2964-749: The 1st Battalion served in the New Zealand Wars between 1860 and 1867. The regiment was not fundamentally affected by the Cardwell Reforms of the 1870s, which gave it a depot at Gibraltar Barracks in Bury St Edmunds from 1873, or by the Childers reforms of 1881 – as it already possessed two battalions, there was no need for it to amalgamate with another regiment and it became simply the Suffolk Regiment . The depot

3078-415: The 2nd Battalion became known as a "well officered battalion that compared favourably with the best battalion in the service having the nicest possible feeling amongst all ranks". The 2nd was also regarded as a good shooting battalion with high level of musketry skills. The spirit of independence and self-reliance exhibited by officers and non-commissioned officers led to the 2nd Battalion taking first place in

3192-701: The 3/4th and 3/5th amalgamated as 4th Reserve Battalion, and then absorbed the reserve battalion of the Cambridgeshire Regiment to form the Cambridge and Suffolk (Reserve) Battalion. Members of the TF who had not volunteered for overseas service were formed into Provisional Battalions, 4th and 5th Suffolks forming 64th Provisional Battalion. The Military Service Act 1916 swept away the home/foreign service distinction, and all TF soldiers became liable for overseas service, if medically fit. On 1 January 1917

3306-551: The 4th and 5th battalions fought briefly in the defence of Singapore against the Japanese , with the 18th Division, before British Commonwealth forces on that island surrendered on 15 February 1942 under the orders of Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival . Men from the two battalions suffered great hardship as POWs and were forced to participate in the construction of the Burma Railway . The 7th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment

3420-628: The Allies overcame the Hitler Line and the Gothic Line in late 1944. However, due to a shortage of manpower, the regiment was disbanded in January 1945 while in northern Italy. The 50th (Holding) Battalion was created in late May 1940, around the time of the Dunkirk evacuation , and was originally intended temporarily to 'hold' men who were medically unfit, awaiting orders, or, as this was at

3534-492: The Austrian Succession , it fought at Dettingen in June 1743 and Fontenoy in May 1745, where it suffered 322 casualties, the largest of any British unit involved. As a result of the 1751 army reforms, it was renamed the 12th Regiment of Foot and in 1758, the second battalion was detached to form the 65th (2nd Yorkshire, North Riding) Regiment of Foot . During the 1756 to 1763 Seven Years' War , it fought at

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3648-543: The Bass Strait islands became separated from mainland Australia around 12,000 BP, when the sea level was approximately 50 metres (160 ft) below present levels. Port Phillip was flooded by post-glacial rising sea levels between 8000 and 6000 years ago. Oral history and creation stories from the Wathaurong , Woiwurrung and Boonwurrung languages describe the flooding of the bay, which they call Narm-Narm; it

3762-543: The British Colonial Office appointed 5 " Aboriginal Protectors " for the entire Aboriginal population of Victoria, arriving in Melbourne in 1839, they worked "...within a land policy that nullified their work, and there was no political will to change this." "It was government policy to encourage squatters to take possession of whatever [Aboriginal] land they chose,....that largely explains why almost all

3876-797: The Colonies in the British Cabinet, Earl Grey . Grey received nearly 75% of the vote despite Grey having never visited the Colony and being ineligible as a current member of the British Parliament . A second writ was issued to elect five representatives for Port Phillip in October 1848. Following the strategy involving Earl Grey, the nominees included the Duke of Wellington , Lord Palmerston , Lord Brougham , Lord John Russell , and Sir Robert Peel but local representatives were elected. Grey never attempted to take up his seat and it

3990-546: The Colony of Victoria, with separation from New South Wales established by section 1 of the 1851 Act. La Trobe became the new colony's first Lieutenant-Governor. In 1851, the white population of the new colony was still only 77,000, and only 23,000 people lived in Melbourne. Melbourne had already become a centre of Australia's wool export trade. In 1851 gold was first discovered in Clunes and Buninyong near Ballarat , and subsequently at Bendigo . Later discoveries occurred at many sites across Victoria. This triggered one of

4104-441: The District was defined as consisting of all the lands within New South Wales south of 36°S latitude, and between 141°E (that is, the border with the future Colony of South Australia ) and 146°E longitude. Coinciding with the introduction of a fixed-price land sale scheme in January 1840, the District was expanded north to follow the course of the Murrumbidgee River from its source to the Pacific coast at Moruya . However,

4218-457: The German buglers to sound the British Cease Fire and gesticulating for the men of the 2nd to lay down their arms. At length an overwhelming force rushed the 2nd Battalion from the rear, bringing down all resistance and the 2nd's defence of Le Cateau was at an end. Those remaining alive were taken captive by the Germans, spending the next four years as prisoners of war and not returning home until Christmas Day 1918. As an example of their valour and

4332-462: The Government demanding from the banks the large rate of 7% for all moneys deposited with them, the result of land sales. The banks had to charge their customers from 10 to 12% for loans, very often on questionable securities. It was then accelerated by Lord John Russell's instructions that all lands out of town boundaries to be sold at only £1 per acre. Sheep that had been bought at from 30s to 40s per head are now sold at less than 2s. The Insolvent Court

4446-443: The Home Office administered the Militia and Yeomanry, until such time as they were Embodied. The resultant ‘confusion and inconvenience’ it caused, from 1854 to 1855, resulted in being administered exclusively by the War Office from that time onwards. Under the reforms introduced by Secretary of State for War Hugh Childers in 1881, the remaining militia infantry regiments were redesignated as numbered battalions of regiments of

4560-427: The Legislative Council, placing them at a great distance from the areas they represented, and they were consequently considered ineffective and out-of-touch by locals. In protest and in support of a campaign for independence, the 1848 election scheduled for 27 July was disrupted by not nominating candidates for Port Phillip and putting forward for the Town of Melbourne the incumbent Secretary of State for War and

4674-400: The Militia which engaged a recruit for a term of service, a volunteer could quit his corps with fourteen days notice, except while embodied for war or training with the regular forces. Volunteer Corps required recruits to fund their own equipment, however, effectively barring those with low incomes. The militia was transformed into the Special Reserve by the military reforms of Haldane in

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4788-400: The Regular battalions serving overseas. It also spun off the 10th (Reserve) Battalion, which carried out the same task for the 7th, 8th and 9th (Service) Battalions until it became 26th Training Reserve Battalion in 1916. The 1/4th Battalion landed at Le Havre and joined the Jullundur Brigade of the 3rd (Lahore) Division in November 1914 for service on the Western Front. It ended the war as

4902-436: The Suffolk Regiment was deployed to the Malayan Emergency . During the Malayan Emergency in April 1952, soldiers of the Suffolk Regiment killed and decapitated a socialist revolutionary and an important guerrilla of the Malayan National Liberation Army (MNLA) called Hen Yan. After the war, a former member of the Suffolk Regiment wrote a book titled The Suffolks in Malaya which described the killing but omitted any reference to

5016-418: The Territorial Army being doubled as another conflict had, by this time, seemed inevitable. Both battalions were assigned to the 54th Infantry Brigade , which included the 4th Royal Norfolk Regiment , assigned to the 18th Infantry Division , a 2nd Line duplicate of the 54th (East Anglian) Infantry Division . Despite being a 2nd Line formation, the 18th Division contained many 1st Line units. The division spent

5130-421: The Western Front. The 7th (S) Battalion landed at Boulogne-sur-Mer as part of the 35th Brigade in 12th (Eastern) Division in May 1915. The 8th (Service) Battalion landed in France as part of the 53rd Brigade in 18th (Eastern) Division in July 1915 and served until it was disbanded in February 1918. The 9th (Service) Battalion landed at Boulogne as part of 71st Brigade in 24th Division in August 1915. It

5244-467: The approaches to the bay. Hovell, accompanying the party, soon realised that this was not where he had arrived two years before, and reported unfavourably on the swampy land around Western Port, although he referred to better land to the north. In spite of clearing the land for crops, and the construction of a fort and houses, the settlement was abandoned in April 1828. The shortage of good pasture in Van Diemen's Land led to settlers there showing interest in

5358-465: The area now known as Victoria. After the first Europeans settled there in October 1803, in September 1836 the area became part of the colony of New South Wales , known as the District of Port Phillip . In July 1851, the District of Port Phillip was established as its own colony, becoming the Colony of Victoria , with its own government within the British Empire . During the 1850s, gold was discovered in Clunes and Buninyong in Ballarat in 1851, which

5472-404: The battalion transferred to the 123rd Indian Infantry Brigade , part of the 5th Indian Infantry Division and served with them in the Burma Campaign . In 1944 the battalion was flown to Imphal to clear Japanese positions. The 4th/5th Battalion, Suffolk Regiment was a Territorial Army unit and was split to help re-create the 5th Battalion, which had been disbanded in the 1920s, in 1939 due to

5586-401: The battalion was converted to a regiment in the Royal Armoured Corps , becoming 142nd Regiment Royal Armoured Corps (142 RAC) and joined 25th Army Tank Brigade . They continued to wear their Suffolk Regiment cap badge on the black beret of the Royal Armoured Corps as did all infantry units converted this way. Equipped with Churchill tanks the regiment landed at Algiers in 1943, fighting at

5700-458: The battles of Minden , Villinghausen and Wilhelmsthal , as well as the Siege of Cassel . In 1782, it was given a county association as the 12th (East Suffolk) Regiment of Foot . The regiment embarked for the West Indies in 1793 and took part in the capture of Martinique , Saint Lucia and Guadeloupe in 1794. It returned to England in 1795 and then embarked for India in 1796 where it took part in operations against Tipu Sultan including

5814-403: The bay. The site of the settlement is now a reserve incorporating four graves from the period. When Collins departed, several convicts – who had escaped when they heard the colony was leaving for Van Diemen's Land – were left behind. They were presumed killed by Aboriginal people. However, William Buckley survived, meeting Wathaurong people on the Bellarine Peninsula and living with them for

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5928-400: The border was retracted south to the Murray River after extensive opposition in Sydney , including from the Legislative Council , all of whom were appointed by the Sovereign or the Governor of the Colony. When the Legislative Council was expanded and restructured to include 12 appointed members and 24 members elected by eligible landowners, taking effect from the 1843 colonial elections ,

6042-405: The campaign against the Moplahs in Malabar in 1922 while the 2nd battalion was deployed to Shanghai in 1927 before moving to India in 1929. The 1st Battalion, Suffolk Regiment was a Regular Army unit stationed in Devonport as part of the 8th Infantry Brigade , 3rd Infantry Division and served with the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) in France from late 1939 to May 1940. The division

6156-450: The casualties sustained, was transferred to GHQ Troops before, on 25 October, transferring to the 8th Brigade of the 3rd Division and, almost a year later, transferred to 76th Brigade of the same division, where they were to remain for the rest of the year. The 3rd (Reserve) Battalion went to its war station in the Harwich Garrison, where it spent the war carrying out is twin roles of home defence and preparing reinforcement drafts for

6270-402: The coast of Australia. Ships sailing from Great Britain to Sydney crossed the Indian Ocean and Southern Ocean , sailing around Van Diemen's Land before turning north to their destination. Several captains viewed the expanse of water between Van Diemen's Land and the east coast of New South Wales and wondered whether it was a large bay or a strait . Survivors of Sydney Cove , wrecked in

6384-448: The country across Bass Strait, following Hume and Hovell's reports and stories of visiting sealers. Pastoralist John Batman and surveyor John Wedge planned an expedition from Launceston in 1825 but permission was not granted. A number of settlers sought land over the next few years, but Governor Darling turned down all requests. A sealer and whaler William Dutton built a hut on the shore of Portland Bay in 1829 where he resided for

6498-433: The country to the south in October 1824. They crossed the Murray River (which they named the Hume River) near the site of Albury and continued south. They crossed the Goulburn River (which they called the Hovell) above the site of Yea , and were forced to detour around mountains. They arrived on the shores of Corio Bay , mistakenly believing it to be Western Port, and returned to Sydney in January 1825, lavishly praising

6612-579: The decapitation and falsely claimed Hen Yan was accompanied by five fellow guerrillas. The Suffolk Regiment killed another leading MNLA guerrilla called Liew Kon Kim . The Suffolk Regiment Museum is based at Gibraltar Barracks in Bury St Edmunds . The regiment's battle honours were as follows: Victoria Crosses were awarded to the following men of the regiment: Colonels of the regiment were as follows: Regimental titles in italics indicate they were disbanded or renumbered before 1881. Militia (United Kingdom) A separate voluntary Local Militia

6726-411: The dispossession of Aboriginal peoples from their lands with the establishment of sheep runs by squatters, conflict over resources and land use inevitably occurred. One highly notable incident called the Convincing Ground massacre occurred in Portland Bay in 1833 or 1834 in a possible dispute about a beached whale between whalers and the Kilcarer gundidj clan of the Gunditjmara people. Melbourne

6840-407: The early years of the war in the defence of England and guarding against a possible German invasion after the bulk of the British Army was evacuated at Dunkirk . In late 1941 the 18th Division, the 4th and 5th Suffolks included, were originally to be sent to Egypt but instead were sent to Singapore to help strengthen the garrison there after Japan entered the war in December 1941. In early 1942, both

6954-489: The eastern Melbourne region. This initially friendly encounter started with trading, eating, and gifting, and was suddenly interrupted by a violent ambush by another group of Aboriginal people. The crew in response shot at the Aboriginal people, and continued to shoot at them as they fled, inflicting likely mortal wounds on two of them. Murray then ordered the ship carronades to be fired at the fleeing Aboriginal people. "They were all clothed in opossum skins and in each basket

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7068-473: The first people executed in the Port Phillip District . This took place in 1842, a mere seven years after John Batman's treaties with the Kuhn people, when the two Tasmanian Aboriginal men were publicly hanged for murder." The Tunnerminnerwait and Maulboyheenner public marker exists at the place of execution near the site of the Old Melbourne Gaol , with artwork by Brook Andrew and Trent Walter . A severe financial crisis took place in 1842–3, mainly due to

7182-437: The first permanent European settlement on the north coast of Bass Strait. Victoria's first successful British settlement was at Portland , on the west coast of what is now Victoria. Portland was settled on 19 November 1834 by the Henty family , who were originally farmers from Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania). When Major Thomas Mitchell led an expedition to the region from Sydney in 1835, arriving at Portland in August 1836, he

7296-483: The former becoming the Special Reserve (SR) and the latter the Territorial Force (TF). The regiment now had the 3rd (Reserve) of the SR at Gibraltar Barracks and the 4th (at Portman Road in Ipswich ) and 5th (at Gibraltar Barracks) TF battalions. In 1910 the regiment gained another Territorial unit, the 6th (Cyclist) Battalion (at Woodbridge Road in Ipswich ), after the breakup of the Essex and Suffolk Cyclist Battalion. The 1st Battalion landed at Le Havre as part of

7410-417: The largest gold rushes the world has ever seen. The colony grew rapidly in both population and economic power. In ten years the population of Victoria increased sevenfold from 76,000 to 540,000. All sorts of gold records were produced including the "richest shallow alluvial goldfield in the world" and the largest gold nugget . Victoria produced in the decade 1851–1860, twenty million ounces of gold, one third of

7524-420: The level of training they had been subject to as a peacetime unit, it is noted that 720 men of 2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment total roll call of some 1,000, many of whom had been with the battalion since the 1899 posting to Quetta, were killed, wounded or captured. This fight-to-the-last-man defence at Le Cateau was later recognised as a key factor in preventing the German occupation of Paris. The battalion, due to

7638-513: The line, ranking after the two regular battalions. Typically, an English, Welsh or Scottish regiment would have two militia battalions (the 3rd and 4th) and Irish regiments three (numbered 3rd – 5th). The militia must not be confused with the volunteer units created in a wave of enthusiasm in the second half of the nineteenth century. In contrast with the Volunteer Force , and the similar Yeomanry Cavalry, they were considered rather plebeian. Volunteer units appealed to better-off recruits as, unlike

7752-421: The militia were an entirely infantry force, but the 1852 Act introduced Militia Artillery units whose role was to man coastal defences and fortifications, relieving the Royal Artillery for active service. Some of these units were converted from existing infantry militia regiments, others were newly raised. In 1877 the militia of Anglesey and Monmouthshire were converted to Royal Engineers . Up to 1855,

7866-418: The newly created electoral districts included Port Phillip (to be represented by 5 members) and the Town of Melbourne . On 1 July 1843, a proclamation formalised the border as running from Cape Howe , to the nearest source of the Murray River, and then along the course of the Murray to the border with South Australia. Elected representatives for Port Phillip and Melbourne needed to be in Sydney to serve in

7980-426: The next 32 years. (In 1835 he became aware of John Batman 's Port Phillip Association camp and reintroduced himself to Europeans.) For the next thirty years a few sealers and whalers rested on the southern coast of New South Wales. Following a number of exploratory expeditions south from the settled areas of New South Wales, the pastoralist Hamilton Hume and former sea-captain William Hovell set off to explore

8094-482: The north coast of Van Diemens Land . The party was transferred to the fledgling settlement of Hobart , founded by Lieutenant John Bowen as a penal colony at Risdon Cove in September 1803. The brief settlement at Sorrento achieved little and left only a few relics for modern tourists to observe. Collins has been criticised for not investigating the bay thoroughly, in particular, the northern head with its fresh-water river, and for being too hasty in his condemnation of

8208-545: The original inhabitants of Port Phillip's vast grasslands were dead so soon after 1835". By 1845, fewer than 240 wealthy Europeans held all the pastoral licences then issued in Victoria and became the patriarchs "...that were to wield so much political and economic power in Victoria for generations to come." Regarding the infamous Trial of R vs Tunnerminnerwait and Maulboyheener , "Tragically two of these (Aboriginal) men, Tunnerminnerwait (known as Jack) and Maulboyheenner (known as Bob, or sometimes called Timmy or Jimmy), became

8322-550: The party "took vengeance on the murderes" (referring to the untried Wathaurong people), while The Cornwall Chronicle of Tasmania reported with approval in 1836 that the band had scouted the Wathaurong camp overnight, and in the morning launched an attack with the intent of "annihilating them". The incident is today remembered as " The Mount Cottrell massacre ". Between 1836 and 1842, Victorian Aboriginal groups were largely dispossessed of territory bigger than England. Although

8436-561: The pioneer battalion of the 58th (2/1st London) Division . The 1/5th Battalion landed at Suvla Bay as part of the 163rd (1/1st Norfolk and Suffolk) Brigade in the 54th (East Anglian) Division in August 1915; it was evacuated from Gallipoli in December 1915 and moved to Egypt and saw action again at First Battle of Gaza in March 1917 and through the Sinai and Palestine campaign . The 1/6th (Cyclist) Battalion served in home defence throughout

8550-427: The pressure on food resources. Port Phillip, with a favourable climate and rich fishing and sealing resources, seemed an ideal location for another settlement. A full description of Murray's and Flinders' discoveries, together with King's thoughts on settlement, but not Grimes' report, reached England just as HMS  Calcutta was being prepared to send a shipload of convicts to Sydney. In February 1803, Lord Hobart

8664-602: The promontory, Black discovered the Hogan Group , which he named after the ship's owner Michael Hogan . Harbinger arrived in Port Jackson on 12 January 1801. In January 1802 Lieutenant John Murray in Lady Nelson visited Western Port and entered Port Phillip on 14 February. He named Arthur's Seat , explored Corio Bay and formally took possession of the bay (which he named Port King) for Britain. The bay

8778-528: The protection of the law as British subjects. Early in 1836, Mr Franks, one of the first immigrants to the region, and his shepherd were found dead as a result of steel hatchet wounds to the head. His station was near Cotterill's Mount, called the Sugarloaf, near the river Exe, now Werribee. Upon discovering the scene, and a nearby food store which appeared to have been ransacked, George Smith travelled to Point Gellibrand and formed an exploratory band. The party

8892-674: The provisional units became numbered battalions of their parent regiments, with 64th Provisional Bn, becoming 14th Suffolks, serving in bhome defence. 15th (Suffolk Yeomanry) Battalion was formed in Egypt in 1917 from the dismounted Suffolk Yeomanry . It served as infantry in Palestine until the end of the war. A number of battalions were raised in 1914–15 as part of the New Armies (' Kitchener's Army '). The 7th, 8th and 9th (Service) Battalions were formed at Bury St Edmunds and all served on

9006-433: The quality of the country they had passed through. In April 1826 the French explorer d'Urville visited one of the sealers' camps on Phillip Island. Worried by this renewed French interest in the area and encouraged by Hume and Hovell's reports, Governor Darling ordered a settlement to be established at Western Port. A small convict party arrived in November 1826 at Corinella under the command of Samuel Wright, to protect

9120-572: The rebellion subsequently became members of the Victoria Parliament, and the rebellion is regarded as a pivotal moment in the development of Australian democracy. In 1857, reflecting the growing presence of Irish immigrants, in Victoria the British Empire had its first Catholic government leaders: John O'Shanassy as Premier, and the former Young Irelander , Charles Gavan Duffy his deputy. Melbourne's Protestant establishment

9234-526: The reforming post 1906 Liberal government. In 1908 the militia infantry battalions were redesignated as "reserve" and a number were amalgamated or disbanded. Altogether, 101 infantry battalions, 33 artillery regiments and two engineer regiments of special reservists were formed. In contrast with the soldier serving in the militia, those who served under Special Reserve terms of service had an obligation to serve overseas, as stipulated in paragraph 54. The standards of medical fitness were lower than for recruits to

9348-575: The region of southern Victoria and on to the land bridge of the Bassian plain to Tasmania by at least 35,000 years ago. During the Ice Age about 20,000 years BP , the area now the bay of Port Phillip would have been dry land, and the Yarra and Werribee river would have joined to flow through the heads then south and south west through the Bassian plain before meeting the ocean to the west. Tasmania and

9462-464: The regular infantry. The possibility of enlisting in the army under Regular terms of service were facilitated under paragraph 38, one precondition was that the recruit 'fulfils the necessary physical requirements.' A further contrast was the replacement of several weeks of preliminary training with six months of full time training upon enlisting in the Special Reserve. Upon mobilisation,

9576-492: The rest of the army. Only single men aged 20–22 were to be conscripted (given a free suit of civilian clothes as well as a uniform), and after six months full-time training would be discharged into the reserve. The first intake was called up, but the Second World War was declared soon afterwards, and the militiamen lost their identity in the rapidly expanding army. Two units still maintain their militia designation in

9690-584: The special reserve units would be formed at the depot and continue training while guarding vulnerable points in Britain. The special reserve units remained in Britain throughout the First World War , but their rank and file did not, since the object of the special reserve was to supply drafts of replacements for the overseas units of the regiment. The Special Reserve reverted to its militia designation in 1921, then to Supplementary Reserve in 1924, though

9804-605: The strait, proving its existence. In December 1800, Lieutenant James Grant in HMS ; Lady Nelson , on way from Cape Town to Sydney, sailed through Bass Strait from west to east. Governor King , disappointed at the vagueness of Grant's chart, sent him back to survey the strait more thoroughly. Bad weather prevented him from proceeding beyond Western Port, where he stayed for five weeks, planting wheat, Indian corn, peas, rice, coffee and potatoes on Churchill Island off Phillip Island . In 1801 Harbinger , under John Black ,

9918-418: The time of Dunkirk, returning from overseas service. However, in October, the battalion was re-designated as the 8th Battalion. In addition, the 6th, 9th, 30th, 31st and 70th (Young Soldiers) Battalions were also formed, although none of these saw service overseas. The regiment was amalgamated with the Royal Norfolk Regiment to form the 1st East Anglian Regiment (Royal Norfolk and Suffolk) in 1959. In 1949

10032-532: The units were effectively placed in "suspended animation" until disbanded in 1953. The term militiaman was briefly revived in 1939. In the aftermath of the Munich Crisis Leslie Hore-Belisha , Secretary of State for War , wished to introduce a limited form of conscription , an unheard of concept in peacetime. It was thought that calling the conscripts 'militiamen' would make this more acceptable, as it would render them distinct from

10146-407: The war. Soon after the outbreak of war the TF formed 2nd Line battalions, initially to supply reinforcements to the 1st Line serving overseas, then as service battalions in their own right. The 2/4th, 2/5th and 2/6th (Cyclist) Battalions served in home defence throughout the war. The 3rd Line battalions were formed in 1915 to supply reinforcements. The 3/6th (Cyclist) Battalion was disbanded in 1916,

10260-680: The world's output. Immigrants arrived from all over the world to search for gold, principally from the British Isles and particularly from Ireland. Many Chinese miners worked in Victoria, and their legacy is particularly strong in Bendigo and its environs. Although there was some racism directed at them, there was not the level of anti-Chinese violence that was seen at the Lambing Flat riots in New South Wales. However, there

10374-406: Was a riot at Buckland Valley near Bright in 1857 . Conditions on the gold fields were cramped and unsanitary – an outbreak of typhoid at Buckland Valley in 1854 killed over 1,000 miners. In 1854 there was an armed rebellion against the government of Victoria by miners protesting against mining taxes (the " Eureka Stockade "). This was crushed by British troops, but some of the leaders of

10488-556: Was a clash, where a drummer boy, John Egan and several other members of the convoy were attacked by a mob looking to loot the wagons. Tradition variously had it that Egan either was killed there and then or was the first casualty of the fighting on the day of the battle. However, his grave in Old Ballarat Cemetery was removed in 2001 after research carried out by Dorothy Wickham showed that Egan had survived and died in Sydney in 1860. While still in Australia, elements of

10602-486: Was a skirmish involving the 12th regiment and a mob of rebellious miners. Foot police reinforcements had already reached the Ballarat government outpost on 19 October 1854. A further detachment of the 40th (2nd Somersetshire) Regiment of Foot arrived a few days behind. On 28 November, the 12th Regiment arrived to reinforce the local government camp. As they moved near where the rebels ultimately made their last stand, there

10716-477: Was a war-formed unit raised in June 1940, shortly after Dunkirk, and, on 10 October, was assigned to the 210th Independent Infantry Brigade (Home) alongside other hostilities-only battalions. With the brigade, the battalion alternated between home defence duties and training to repel an expected invasion of the United Kingdom. In November 1941, with the threat of invasion reduced due to the oncoming winter,

10830-486: Was also a significant source of recruits for the Regular Army, where men had received a taste of army life. An officer's commission in the militia was often a 'back door' route to a Regular Army commission for young men who could not obtain one through purchase or gain entry to Sandhurst . Under the act, Militia units could be embodied by Royal Proclamation for full-time service in three circumstances: Until 1852

10944-724: Was also disbanded in February 1918. Sergeant Arthur Frederick Saunders of the 9th Battalion was awarded the Victoria Cross while serving with the battalion during the Battle of Loos , the largest British Army offensive of 1915. The Cambridge Service Battalion was a Kitchener's Army unit formed by the Cambridge TF Association and later assigned to the Suffolk Regiment as the [[11th (Service) Battalion, Suffolk Regiment (Cambridgeshire) |11th (Service) Battalion (Cambridgeshire)]]. It landed at Boulogne as part of

11058-511: Was commanded by Major-General Bernard Montgomery . With the rest of the BEF, it was evacuated from Dunkirk in 1940. The next four years were spent training in the United Kingdom for the invasion of Normandy in 1944, otherwise known as D-Day . The 1st Battalion, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Richard E. Goodwin , landed on Sword beach and was involved in attacking and taking

11172-680: Was created in 1808 before being disbanded in 1816. By 1813 the British Army was experiencing a shortage of manpower to maintain their battalions at full strength. Some consideration was given to recruiting foreign nationals; however, on 4 November 1813 a bill was introduced to Parliament to allow Militia volunteers to serve in Europe. In the event only three battalions were raised, and these were sent to serve under Henry Bayly . On 12 April 1814 they arrived in Bordeaux , where they were attached to

11286-779: Was declared vacant in 1850 and a replacement elected. The independence campaign continued and led Grey to introduce the Australian Colonies Government Act 1850 into the British Parliament, separating the District of Port Phillip from New South Wales to become the Colony of Victoria from 2 July 1851. The separation occurred along the 1843 borders and still apply to the modern State of Victoria . The same Act created bicameral legislatures and instituted self-government for each colony. With

11400-491: Was for 56 days on enlistment, then the recruits would return to civilian life but report for 21–28 days training per year. The full army pay during training and a financial retainer thereafter made a useful addition to the men's civilian wage. Of course, many saw the annual camp as the equivalent of a paid holiday. The militia thus appealed to agricultural labourers, colliers and the like, men in casual occupations , who could leave their civilian job and pick it up again. The militia

11514-560: Was founded in 1835 by John Batman , also from Van Diemen's Land and quickly grew into a thriving community, although at great human cost to the original inhabitants. Its foundation was the result of an invasion of wealthy squatters, land speculators and their indentured servants (including ex-convicts) who arrived from 1835, in a race with one another to seize an 'empty' country. The British Crown and colonial governments did not recognise prior Aboriginal ownership of their lands, waters and property, in spite of claiming that Aborigines fell within

11628-656: Was now inevitable that settlement would occur. In June 1834 banker Charles Swanston advised his client George Mercer that land was scarce in Van Diemen's Land and he should invest across Bass Strait. Pastoralists John Aitken and George Russell suggested forming a partnership, and in August 1834 a group of eight Launceston capitalists formed what became the Port Phillip Association . On 19 November 1834 Edward Henty landed in Portland Bay and began

11742-643: Was previously covered in scrubby tea-tree and was a kangaroo hunting ground. Aboriginal creation stories describe how Bunjil was responsible for the formation of the bay, or the bay was flooded when the Yarra River was created. Another story says that Balayang the bat created the oceans, rivers, and creeks. Coming from New Zealand in 1770, Lieutenant James Cook in HM Bark Endeavour sighted land at Point Hicks , about 70 km west of Gabo Island , before turning east and north to follow

11856-770: Was recruited in Norfolk and Suffolk by the Duke of Norfolk . Raised to suppress the Monmouth Rebellion , it became part of the Royal Army and its Colonel Lord Lichfield remained loyal to James II after the 1688 Glorious Revolution . He was replaced by Henry Wharton and the regiment fought throughout the 1689 to 1691 Williamite War in Ireland , including the Battle of the Boyne , the Capture of Waterford and

11970-606: Was reduced to a cadre and returned to England to be reformed by absorbing the newly-formed 16th Battalion. It went back to the Western Front and ended the war as part of 43rd Brigade in 14th (Light) Division . 13th (Reserve) Battalion, Suffolk Regiment (Cambridgeshire) was formed in 1915 from the reserve companies of the 11th Battalion; in 1916 it became 108th Training Reserve Battalion. 1st (Reserve) Garrison and 2nd (Home Service) Garrison Battalions were also formed in 1916 and served in England. The 1st battalion saw action in

12084-458: Was revived by the Militia Act 1852 ( 15 & 16 Vict. c. 50), enacted during a period of international tension. As before, units were raised and administered on a county basis, and filled by voluntary enlistment (although conscription by means of the militia ballot might be used if the counties failed to meet their quotas). It was intended to be seen as an alternative to the army. Training

12198-570: Was rushed by all classes of the community. The first petition for the separation of the Port Phillip District (or ' Australia Felix ') from New South Wales was drafted in 1840 by Henry Fyshe Gisborne and presented by him to Governor Gipps . Gipps, who had previously been in favour of separation, rejected the petition. Agitation of the Port Phillip settlers continued and led to the establishment of Port Phillip District as

12312-710: Was sent out led by tour of the Melbourne tribe, and encountered a camp from the Indigenous Wathaurong tribe, whereupon an unclear incident occurred. Port Philip Police Magistrate Captain William Lonsdale advised the Colonel Secretary that no harm was inflicted on the Aboriginal people, however Wathaurong histories report that 35 of their people were murdered in retaliatory violence. The Traralgon Record newspaper reported in 1915 that

12426-518: Was severely wounded after six hours of battle as he went forward to take ammunition to the hard-pressed battalion machine gunners. Almost totally decimated as a fighting unit after over eight hours of incessant fighting, the 2nd Battalion, Suffolk Regiment was gradually outflanked but would still not surrender. This was despite the fact that the German Army , knowing the 2nd Battalion had no hope of survival, entreated them to surrender, even ordering

12540-497: Was surprised to find a small but prosperous community living off the fertile farmland. In 1835, John Pascoe Fawkner and the Port Phillip Association (led by John Batman ) started the Port Phillip settlement that later become known as Melbourne. The District of Port Phillip was formally established as an administrative division within the Colony of New South Wales in September 1836, though with ill-defined borders. In 1839,

12654-465: Was the 32nd Brigade Depot from 1873 to 1881, and the 12th Regimental District depot thereafter. Under the reforms the regiment became the Suffolk Regiment on 1 July 1881. As the county regiment of Suffolk, it also gained the county's militia and rifle volunteer battalions, which were integrated into the regiment as numbered battalions. After these reforms, the regiment now included: Regulars Militia Volunteer Force The 1st Battalion served in

12768-460: Was the second vessel to sail through Bass Strait en route to Port Jackson . She reached the coast near Cape Otway on 1 January 1801, then veered sharply south-west to the north-western tip of Governor King's Island (now King Island ), which Black named after the Governor of New South Wales, Philip Gidley King . She then sailed easterly towards Wilsons Promontory . Proceeding around the tip of

12882-558: Was the start of the Victorian Gold Rush . In 1901 it became a state of the Commonwealth of Australia . The state of Victoria was originally home to many Aboriginal nations that had occupied the land for tens of thousands of years. According to Gary Presland , Aboriginal people have lived in Victoria for about 40,000 years, living a semi-nomadic existence of fishing, hunting and gathering, and farming eels , as

12996-631: Was then known as Narm-Narm by the people of the Kulin Nation, and Murray called the bay Port King after the Governor of New South Wales , Philip Gidley King . On 4 September 1805, King formally renamed it Port Phillip, in honour of his predecessor Arthur Phillip . Murray chose to base the Lady Nelson off what is now known as Sorrento Beach. During this voyage, Murray records in his journal his first encounter with local Aboriginal peoples in

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