Formation and early history 'A' Field Battery was originally formed as a permanent unit on 1 August 1871 following the withdrawal of British artillery units from Australia. 'A' Battery returned to Australia in August – September 1901. During its deployment, it lost one man killed in action, two died of disease; Following
Federation, the battery became part of the
Royal Australian Artillery Regiment, and consisted of four guns, based in Sydney. The battery was later used to raise the horsed 'A' Instructional Cadre. When the instructional cadres were disbanded in 1910, No. 1 Field Battery was formed as part of the permanent field artillery.
First World War Following the outbreak of the
First World War in 1914, the 1st Battery Royal Australian Field Artillery (RAFA) was used to raise the 1st
Australian Imperial Force (AIF) Battery, along with other volunteers from the permanent batteries in Victoria and Queensland. Forming part of the 1st Australian Field Artillery Brigade, the battery was among the first units of the AIF to leave Australia. During the period between the wars, the battery undertook several changes in name, eventually being designated A Field Battery, Royal Australian Artillery Regiment. In the final years before the war, it was expanded to two sections. Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, the battery changed its designation several times. In 1974, following the amalgamation of regiments the battery became 'A' Field Battery, 8th/12th Medium Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery. In 1984, the battery assumed the role of parachute deployable artillery for 3 RAR as part of the Parachute Battalion Group. In 1995, 105mm
L119 Hamel guns were air dropped for the first time by the battery. In 1999, the battery deployed personnel to serve in
East Timor as part of
INTERFET. The same year the battery was made an independent battery after 8th/12th Medium Regiment moved to
Darwin. In 2002, the battery became part of
4th Field Regiment. The battery adopted 3 RAR's parachute wings and dull cherry beret. In April 2002, the battery deployed to East Timor as part of
UNTAET and later
UNMISET in non-artillery roles with 3 RAR returning in October 2002. The battery has since deployed personnel in artillery roles to
Iraq and
Afghanistan with the Reconstruction Taskforce and on secondment to
29th Commando Regiment Royal Artillery. The battery has also deployed personnel to East Timor for
Operation Astute in non-artillery roles. In the late 2000s, the Parachute Battalion Group changed to an Airborne Combat Team reducing the battery's role supporting 3 RAR to maintaining the parachute qualifications of observers. On 30 September 2010, the battery became part of 1st Field Regiment and moved to
Enoggera Barracks in
Queensland in January 2011. An artillery parachute capability was to be maintained by a battery within 4th Field Regiment. In January 2011, the battery was re-roled into a gun battery and re-designated as 'A' (Gun) Battery, 1st Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery with the word "field" dropped from the battery's and regiment's title. Reorganising into a gun battery meant the loss of the battery's forward observers and joint-fire teams. The same year the battery equipped with the new
M777A2 155mm Lightweight Towed Howitzer (LWTH). In 2012, the battery was to reorganise back to a traditional battery role by the end 2013 with the designation 'A' Battery. ==Lineage==