53rd (London) Medium Regiment On the outbreak of war in September 1939, the regiment formed part of London District. Once again, orders to mobilise arrived during the regiment's annual summer camp. The regiment was to be included in the first contingent of the
British Expeditionary Force (BEF) to go to France, so it returned to Offord Road for mobilisation. On the day war was declared (3 September), it moved to
Kempton Park Racecourse, where drafts of reservists arrived to replace the men who were under-age or unfit for overseas service. It embarked on 2 October.
Dunkirk The regiment formed part of
II Corps of the BEF. The BEF was deployed along the Franco-Belgian border during the months of the
Phoney War, but when the Germans attacked Belgium on 10 May 1940 it began a carefully planned advance to the line of the
River Dyle. 53rd Medium Regiment was in position behind this line by 15 May, firing its first shots in support of
7th Guards Brigade. But the Germans had penetrated the French line on the
River Meuse on the night of 12/13 May, and on 16 May the BEF began retiring to avoid being cut off. By 21 May, II Corps artillery, including 53rd Medium Regt, was in position to support the infantry dug in along the
River Escaut and attempting to hold off the Germans. However, because of pressure elsewhere, the Escaut line could not be held and the BEF continued its retreat to the Ypres–Comines Canal where it halted again. The 53rd Regiment reached Marcq on 26 May. By now, German troops had broken through to the coast to the south on 20 May, and the BEF was encircled. It began a withdrawal to the seaports. The British artillery put down harassing fire to delay the German forces following up, but ammunition was running short. On the night of 26 May the Corps Commander RA (CRA) ordered the 53rd to fire off as much ammunition as possible and then put its guns out of action. The regiment joined the retreat the following day. II Corps' flank was now threatened by the retreat and later surrender of Belgian forces and on 28 May the Germans reached the extreme left of the BEF's perimeter at
Nieuwpoort. Brigadier
Hon E.F. Lawson, the CRA of
48th (South Midland) Division was given the task of shoring up the perimeter. Lawson seized on the gunners of 53rd Medium Regiment who were marching that way. Fighting as infantry alongside other II Corps artillery and engineer units and some French detachments, they were the only troops available to defend the line. They endured heavy mortar and machine-gun fire, and the Germans established a bridgehead in Nieuwpoort, but the gunners repulsed all subsequent attacks that day until relieved by
4th Division. This prevented a German breakthrough to the beaches east of Dunkirk where General Headquarters was positioned and where the evacuation of the BEF (
Operation Dynamo) was proceeding. II Corps withdrew for evacuation on the night of 31 May/1 June, destroying and abandoning all its guns, transport and equipment.
Home defence For the next four years, 53 Medium Regiment served in Home Forces, initially in
Southern Command to defend the British Isles, later preparing for the liberation of Continental Europe as part of 4th
Army Group Royal Artillery (AGRA) in I Corps. The regiment supplied a
cadre of experienced officers and gunners when the infantry of
8th Battalion, Buffs, were converted into
9th Medium Regiment on 1 December 1942.
D-Day In May 1944, the regiment was assigned to
21st Army Group for
Operation Overlord. It supported
6th Airborne Division in the fighting on the
Orne Canal. The regiment then served in 4th AGRA during the campaign in North West Europe. In the first week of December, single guns were being used to knock down windmills and church towers that might have been used as enemy observation posts. In late January 1945, the regiment fired in support of Operation Elephant, an attack to flatten out an enemy bridgehead across the
River Maas. On 15 April, it supported
49th (West Riding) Division's attack on
Arnhem. The regiment was in Germany on
VE-day. 53rd Medium Regiment was placed in suspended animation in 1946.
Capture of Tobruk In late 1940, the regiment sailed for Egypt, joining British Troops Egypt (BTE) in January 1941 before moving out into Libya as part of
XIII Corps during the capture of
Tobruk.
Greece In March 1941, the 64th was one of two medium regiments sent to Greece with
I Australian Corps as part of 'W Force' in
Operation Lustre to support the Greek Army in the
Greco-Italian War. Before it sailed, 64th Medium Rgt exchanged 212 Bty with 234 Bty from
68th (4th West Lancashire) Medium Rgt, so that the whole regiment was equipped with 4.5-inch guns. (212 (London) Bty served with 68 Medium Rgt in
Eritrea.) The Germans invaded Greece and Yugoslavia at dawn on 6 April, beginning the
Battle of Greece. The Commonwealth commander, Lt-Gen
Henry Maitland Wilson, had anticipated the German advance through Yugoslavia, and had placed a force to protect this dangerous flank. Known as the
Amyntaion detachment, it included 64 Medium Regiment (less one Troop) alongside
3rd Royal Tank Regiment,
27th New Zealand Machine-Gun Battalion and 1st Australian Anti-Tank Regiment (less one battery), initially under the commander of the Corps medium artillery, Brig E.A. Lee. As the campaign developed, Wilson expanded the Amyntaion detachment to cover the Greek retreat: on 10 April it shelled the advancing
Leibstandarte SS Adolf Hitler Brigade. But within days 'Force W' was withdrawing to the
Thermopylae position. The roads over the
Pindus mountains were entrusted to Brig
Stanley Savige of
17th Australian Infantry Brigade, whose 'Savige Force' included 64th Medium Regiment as well as New Zealand field guns and Australian anti-tank guns. On the night of 17/18 April Savige Force withdrew towards
Larissa. Germans tanks appeared in front of the New Zealand rearguard at mid-day on 18 April, and were engaged for the rest of the day by a troop of 64th Medium Regiment. The decision to withdraw the Commonwealth forces was made on 21 April and evacuation was carried out over the following week. When ordered to evacuate, most of the regiment was taken off the beaches at
Marathon by
HMS Carlisle and landed at
Suda Bay, Crete, but some were taken by other ships back to Egypt. In October, the regiment returned to Egypt, where it joined
Eighth Army in December, with 211 Bty attached to
2nd South African Division during the
capture of Bardia.
North Africa In February 1942, the regiment was re-equipped with 16 French-built
155mm howitzers obtained from the US under
Lend-Lease and its first two of the new
Mk 2 4.5-inch guns. It was with
X Corps in June 1942 and fought with the
2nd New Zealand Division at the
Battle of Mersa Matruh, when the division was surrounded and had to break out. 211 Bty was reduced to five guns and 212 to four guns; the regiment lost over 250 men during the withdrawal. At
Ruweisat Ridge, 211 Bty had received three new 4.5-inch guns, but 212 lost two more to air attack and was withdrawn to Cairo to refit, where it was issued with the new
5.5-inch gun. In August, 212 Bty was with
44th (Home Counties) Infantry Division at the
Battle of Alam Halfa During the pursuit after Alamein, 211 Bty operated with 2nd New Zealand Division during November, detaching B Trp to
4th Light Armoured Brigade. The regiment then fought its way across North Africa and into
Tunisia under Eighth Army, including the
Battle of the Mareth Line. As part of 5th AGRA, 64th Medium Rgt supported 21st Army Group throughout the Normandy campaign and the advance across Belgium.
Arnhem On 20 September 1944, the regiment was ordered to move up behind the advancing troops of XXX Corps, and the following day it assembled four miles south of
Nijmegen. Here it picked up wireless transmissions from the RA of
1st Airborne Division, which was isolated at
Arnhem with few working radios. The regiment responded to appeals for fire support with the 4.5-inch battery, firing at extreme range. The battery moved up about 4000 yards about midday to shorten the range, while a 155 mm battery was being hurried up the road and attached to 64 Medium Rgt about 16.00, while an officer was sent out with a relay wireless as far forward as possible. The following day the regiment engaged 31 targets for 1st Airborne, and the regiment's 5.5-inch battery, which had been supporting the advance of XXX Corps, was brought up and positioned with the 4.5s by first light on 23 September. A battery of
3.7 inch Heavy Anti-Aircraft guns and a further 4.5-inch battery came under command, but the road behind them had been cut, so ammunition supply became a problem, as 25 targets were engaged. By the night of 25 September, 1st Airborne could hold out no longer, and the remnants were evacuated across the
Nederrijn under cover of a heavy barrage from 64 Medium Rgt and its attached guns.
Rhineland 64th Medium Rgt continued to support 21st Army Group as part of 5th AGRA until the end of the war in Europe. After
VE Day, the regiment handed in its guns and undertook occupation duties in Germany. 64th Medium Regiment was placed in suspended animation on 1 April 1946 and was formally disbanded in 1947. ==Postwar==