5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] A Short History of the : 82 nd (West Africa) Infantry Division w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 1 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 2 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] BACKGROUND and FORMATION There were four colonies of the United Kingdom in West Africa. These were Nigeria (which was the largest in terms of both area and population), The Gold Coast (renamed as Ghana on independence in 1957), Sierra Leone and The Gambia. Each of the four colonies had their own regiment, which were consolidated into the West Africa Frontier Force in 1900. In 1928, it was granted the title Royal West Africa Frontier Force. At the outbreak of war, there were five Regular battalions and one Light Artillery battery of The Nigeria Regiment, two Regular and one Territorial Force battalions of The Gold Coast Regiment, one battalion of the Sierra Leone Regiment and one Company based in The Gambia. Over the next couple of years, all four regiments expanded with wartime recruitment. In 1939 and 1940, the battalions of the Royal West Africa Frontier Force and the King’s African Rifles were formed into two formations, the 1 st and 2 nd African Divisions (later redesignated as the 11 th and 12 th African Divisions). Both divisions contained units from both West and East Africa. These fought in the 1941 campaign to secure Abyssinia, Ethiopia and Somaliland from the Italian Forces. Following the successful Allied campaign, the 11 th and 12 th African Divisions were eventually withdrawn from Abyssinia and broken up in 1941 and 1943 respectively. In December 1942, the General Officer Commanding West Africa, Lieutenant General GIFFARD visited the War Office and made the suggestion that, following the end of the threat to West Africa from the w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 3 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] former French colonies, the West African formations could be utilized in Burma. On the 1 st January 1943, the War Office informed Headquarters West Africa Command that a division and a large number of non divisional ancillary units would be required for service in Burma. A fortnight later, the order came for the formation of a second division also for service in Burma. The second of the two West African divisions was formed on the 1 st August 1943 in Nigeria. It formally assumed command of all the units in Nigeria on the 1 st November 1943 with the three brigades coming under command of the division on this date. Each was organised as a brigade group. THE DIVISIONAL COMMANDER The divisional commander was Major General George McIllree Stanton BRUCE, O.B.E., M.C., who was born in 1896. Between 1933 and 1938, George BRUCE had been the commanding officer of the Malay Regiment in Malaya. On the 12 th October 1940, he assumed command of the 204 th Independent Infantry Brigade in the United Kingdom. On the 26 th August 1942, he took temporary command of the 135 th Infantry Brigade in the 45 th Infantry Division, but on the 1 st September 1942, returned to the command of the 204 th Brigade. On that same date, the brigade was redesignated as the 185 th Infantry Brigade and joined the 42 nd Armoured Division. He was promoted to Major General in June 1943, and became the General Officer Commanding Nigeria. THE BRIGADES IN THE DIVISION w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 4 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] The 1 st (West Africa) Infantry Brigade comprised three battalions of the Nigeria Regiment, namely the 1st Battalion, 2 nd Battalion and 3 rd Battalions of the regiment. The brigade had been formed on the 3rd October 1939 by the redesignation of the regimental headquarters of the Nigeria Regiment. In June 1940, the brigade was redesignated as the 23 rd (Nigeria) Infantry Brigade, and it came under command of the 1 st African Division (later being retitled as the 11 th African Division). The brigade served with the division in Abyssinia and Somaliland during the campaign to oust the Italian forces from the region. The brigade returned to West Africa in September 1941, and was still serving in Nigeria when it joined this division on its formation. Although the battalions allocated to the brigade were all regular army units, by the time of joining the division many changes in personnel had taken place. At the time of joining the division, the commanding officer of the brigade was Brigadier Charles Roger Alan SWYNNERTON, D.S.O.. Born in 1901, SWYNNERTON was commissioned into The North Staffordshire Regiment. He had assumed command of the brigade on the 21 st September 1943. The 2 nd (West Africa) Infantry Brigade had been formed in September 1939 by The Gold Coast Regiment. In 1940, it became the 24 th (Gold Coast) Infantry Brigade and served with the 12 th African Division in the Abyssinian Campaign of 1941. The brigade returned to West Africa in December 1941, joining the division in Nigeria on the 1 st November 1943. Pre-war, The Gold Coast Regiment (based in the country now known as Ghana) comprised two Regular Army battalions and one Territorial Force battalion, the 1 st Battalion, 2nd Battalion and 3 rd Battalion (T.F.). All three mobilized in 1939, and came under command of this brigade. The formation was commanded by Brigadier w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 5 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] Ernest Walter Davie WESTERN, D.S.O., who assumed command on the 19 th November 1943. The 4 th (West Africa) Brigade consisted of three battalions of the Nigeria Regiment, namely the 5 th Battalion, 6 th Battalion and 10 th Battalion. The 5 th Battalion was a pre war Regular Army unit, with the other two battalions being war raised service units. The commanding officer was Brigadier Henry GIBBONS, M.C., but he was replaced by Brigadier Abdy RICKETTS, D.S.O., O.B.E. on the 20 th October 1944 whilst the brigade was stationed in India. Brigadier RICKETTS was born in 1905 and educated at Winchester and the Royal Military College, Sandhurst. He was commissioned into The Durham Light Infantry in 1925, but two years later seconded to the Shanghai Defence Force. In 1930, he was stationed on the North West Frontier in India. As a Colonel, Ricketts served with the Chindits, taking temporary command of the 3rd (West Africa) Infantry Brigade in April 1944. He transferred from the 3 rd (West Africa) Brigade to command this brigade in October 1944. THE SUPPORTING ARMS AND SERVICES The Royal Artillery for the division was not organized on a standard basis of three field regiments, an anti-tank regiment and a light anti-aircraft regiment, having instead a light regiment, an anti-tank regiment and a mortar regiment. The Commander Royal Artillery was Brigadier Richard Humphrey Middleton HILL, who had three regiments under his command. The 102 nd Light Regiment, under the command of Lieutenant Colonel M. C. MUNRO, had w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 6 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] twenty-four Jeep towed 3.7” howitzers. The 22 nd Anti-Tank Regiment, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel FRASER, had thirty-six 6 pounder anti- tank guns which were tractor drawn and, the 42 nd Mortar Regiment, under Lieutenant Colonel A. LIDDELL had twenty-four 3” mortars that were head loaded. There was a small Jeep borne Headquarters Royal Artillery. The factor that made the two West Indian formations unique in the British Army was the use of human porters. Each brigade had an Auxiliary Group, a battalion sized unit comprising unarmed soldiers who head carried supplies and equipment for that brigade. This made the divisions highly mobile and capable of independent operation provided they could be resupplied by air. The two West African formations were in some ways more versatile than the Chindits, which relied on mules for transport. The use of porters was not always understood by commanders, but it allowed the use of both divisions in the flanks of XV Indian Corps in the Arakan. FIRST DEPLOYMENT IN BURMA The division remained in West Africa until May 1944. It sailed for India on the 28 th May 1944, travelling via the Suez Canal, and on arrival in India it concentrated in the Ranchi area. The area around Ranchi was unsuitable for training. It reorganised on a standard divisional establishment in October 1944 having moved from Ranchi to Chiringa. At the end of that month, the division began to relieve the 26 th Indian Infantry Division in the upper Kalapanzin Valley at Goppe and Taung Bazaar. w ww.britishm ilitaryhistory.co.uk Page 7 5 January 2010 [82 (WEST AFRICA) INFANTRY DIVISION ] The division came under the command of XV Corps on 1 st November 1944. In the post monsoon offensive of 1944 and 1945, it was tasked with capturing Buthidaung, in order to support the advance of the 25 th Indian Infantry Division down the Mayu Peninsula, and then to cross the Kalapanzin River and advance south to Htizwe. From there the division was to move into the Kaladan valley and relieve the 81 st (West Africa) Division. The 81 st Division would move back to Chiringa as Corps reserve and then move back to India. Meanwhile, the 82 nd Division would advance southwards down the Kaladan valley to Myebon. The 82 nd Division was new to XV Corps, it was unfamiliar with the country in which it was to operate and was untried in battle.