Formation and early history A volunteer unit, the
Norfolk Rangers, was raised as a home defence force in the county of
Norfolk in 1782, during the
American Revolutionary War, by the Hon George Townshend. Lord Ferrers of Chartley (later
2nd Marquess Townshend). It consisted of a troop of cavalry and an infantry company. The unit was accepted as Yeomanry Cavalry in 1794, and during the
Napoleonic Wars there were three regiments, the 1st West Norfolk, 2nd Mid Norfolk, and 3rd East Norfolk. Along with many other Yeomanry regiments, these were disbanded in 1828. A revived
Norfolk Yeomanry Cavalry was formed in 1831 but disbanded in 1849.
Second Boer War The success of the
Imperial Yeomanry, raised as volunteer mounted infantry during the
Second Boer War, led to a number of new regiments joining the order of battle of the traditional yeomanry cavalry regiments in 1901. Among these was the '''Norfolk Imperial Yeomanry (King's Own)''', raised at the express wish of the newly crowned
King Edward VII (who lived at
Sandringham House in Norfolk). The regiment took the
Royal cypher as its badge. The
cadre for the new unit was provided by the Norfolk squadron of the
Suffolk Yeomanry (the Duke of York's Own Loyal Suffolk Hussars), and it formed four squadrons and a
machine gun section. the regiment was renamed the '''Norfolk Yeomanry (King's Own Royal Regiment) (Dragoons)''' and was distributed as follows: • Regimental HQ at
Cattle Market Street,
Norwich • A Squadron HQ at Norwich, drill stations at
Attleborough,
Long Stratton,
Loddon,
Diss and
Harleston • B Squadron HQ at
North Walsham, drill stations at
Brandiston,
Blofield,
Coltishall,
Cromer,
Hanworth,
Holt,
Marsham,
Reepham,
Stalham and
Great Yarmouth • C Squadron HQ at
Fakenham, drill stations at
Barwick,
Bircham,
Brisley,
Dersingham,
East Dereham,
Fransham,
Hardingham,
Hunstanton,
Massingham,
Quarles, Summerfield,
Swaffham,
Watton,
Wells,
Wymondham and
Walsingham • D Squadron HQ at
King's Lynn, drill stations at
Downham Market,
Thetford and
Wisbech. It formed part of the
Eastern Mounted Brigade.
First World War Mobilisation In accordance with the
Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907 (
7 Edw. 7, c.9) which brought the
Territorial Force into being, the TF was intended to be a home defence force for service during wartime and members could not be compelled to serve outside the country. However, on the outbreak of war on 4 August 1914, many members volunteered for
Imperial Service. Therefore, TF units were split in August and September 1914 into 1st Line (liable for overseas service) and 2nd Line (home service for those unable or unwilling to serve overseas) units. Later, a 3rd Line was formed to act as a reserve, providing trained replacements for the 1st and 2nd Line regiments.
1/1st Norfolk Yeomanry On the outbreak of war in August 1914 the Eastern Mounted Brigade became part of the 1st Mounted Division and served with it in coastal defence at
Woodbridge, Suffolk, until September 1915, when it was sent to reinforce the Allied force at
Gallipoli.
Gallipoli The Eastern Mounted Brigade left 1st Mounted Division and embarked without their horses at
Liverpool on the , sailing on 25 September 1915 for
Lemnos.The Norfolk Yeomanry, with 25 officers & 504 men, were under the command of Lt-Col A. F. Morse. Having arrived at
Mudros harbour on 1 October, the brigade had to remain on board until 8 October, when the Norfolk and Suffolk Yeomanry transhipped to the
Abassieh, but bad weather prevented them from landing at
ANZAC Cove until 10 October. On arrival the brigade was attached to the
54th (East Anglian) Division, with the Norfolk Yeomanry joining the 1/8th
Hampshire Regiment and the 1/4th
Essex Regiment on 14 October for instruction in trench warfare in the
Hill 60 area. After a week they relieved the 1/6th Essex and took over the Norfolk Street sector until they were relieved in turn by the 1/4th
Norfolk Regiment and returned to the New Bedford Road rest camp on 26 October. Throughout November the regiment took turns in the trenches to the right of Hill 60, suffering a trickle of casualties. By the end of the month casualties amounted to 200 out of 500 other ranks, mostly from sickness. In early 1917 the dismounted brigades were moved from Western Egypt and organised into
74th (Yeomanry) Division, with the Norfolk Yeomanry being redesigned from 7 February as the
12th (Norfolk Yeomanry) Battalion, Norfolk Regiment in
230th Infantry Brigade. The 12th Norfolks went into the trenches at
Deir el Balah on 12 April in preparation for the
advance into Palestine. The 74th Division remained in reserve during the
Second Battle of Gaza (17–19 April), and afterwards 230th Bde held the line of Wadi Ghuzzee during May before moving into divisional reserve in June. The 74th Division began a period of intense infantry training in August. The
Third Battle of Gaza opened on the night of 30 October with the Yeomanry taking up positions on the far side of Wadi Ghuzzee. 230th Brigade supported the attack at 08.30, the Norfolks on the left. All the battalions came under
shrapnel fire and progress through the gullies was slow. The brigade came within 1000 yards of the Turkish position by 10.40, by which time the men were crawling beneath machine-gun fire. But covered by their own artillery and machine-gun barrage, they cleared the opposing trenches soon after 12.15. The Yeomanry began consolidating the position, but were still under long-range fire from the next Turkish position, so 230th Bde was sent forward to take this position as well. By now the objective of
Beersheba had fallen to the
Australian Light Horse. The next phase of the battle, as far as 74th Division was concerned, came on 6 November, when it attacked towards the railway line. The advance had to be made over open country to the enemy position which was at least 4000 yards away, but the attack was remarkable for the speed at which the battalions advanced, taking several enemy gun positions. After the victory, the division was left to clear the battlefield, and only caught up with the rest of the army on 23 November, when it began attacking into the hill country. The division was relieved on 4/5 December and shifted round to attack towards
Jerusalem from the west. The night approach for the attack on 8 December was difficult and the troops were late in jumping off (at 05.35). They then had to descend into a steep wadi and climb the other side. The Norfolks on the left took 35 minutes to climb the slope, where they found the Turks had abandoned their trenches but were holding walls and rocks just behind the crest. The Yeomanry worked their way forward over a mile and a half of difficult country and reached the village of Beit Iksa by 11.30. Here they were held up by flanking fire from
Nebi Samwil, and established an outpost line. The following morning the enemy had disappeared, and the advance was made with hardly a shot fired, while
Jerusalem fell into British hands. The offensive was renewed between 28 and 31 December, with the brigades alternating in the lead. After the
Capture of Jericho the British forces continued the advance north until 8 March 1918, when the division attacked the
Tell Azur position. The 12th Norfolks were in reserve as the brigade crossed the
Nablus Road and advanced over broken ground. They then took over the advance, but did not arrive until the afternoon because of the difficult approach. Their task was to scramble down a rough slope before crossing a bridge and then climbing a formidable terraced hill, beyond the crest of which lay the objective (Hill K12), and it was decided to wait until dusk. The battalion lost formation in the dark and the descent was swept with machine gun fire, but the Norfolks found a single practicable path down the slope. At midnight the climb began, with the Turks throwing grenades down on them until they reached the crest. The advance towards K12 was resumed at 06.00 on 9 March but was halted by machine gun fire and exhaustion. Supporting troops continued the advance, but it ended on 12 March and the line achieved was consolidated. Colonel J.F. Barclay led a raid with two companies of his Norfolks on the night of 23/24 March, but the success of the
German spring offensive on the Western Front meant that active operations in Palestine had to be shut down, and reinforcements sent to France.
France and Flanders On arrival in France, the 74th Division conformed to the smaller establishment of divisions in the
British Expeditionary Force, releasing three spare battalions, including the 12th Norfolks, which on 20 June were formed into
94th (Yeomanry) Brigade in the
31st Division. The 12th Norfolks fought with 31st Division in the following actions of the
Hundred Days Offensive: On 31 March 1916, the remaining Mounted Brigades were ordered to be numbered in a single sequence; the brigade was numbered as
13th Mounted Brigade and joined
4th Mounted Division in the
Wivenhoe area. The remainder were converted to other roles, and in 1922 the Norfolk Yeomanry became
108th (Norfolk Yeomanry) Brigade, Royal Field Artillery (RFA), with two batteries (429th and 430th) based at Swaffham. The Commanding Officer (CO) was Lieutenant-Colonel
Viscount Bury,
MC. The following year the regiment was joined by two
Suffolk Yeomanry batteries transferred from
103rd (Suffolk) Brigade, RFA, and after the RFA was merged into the
Royal Artillery (RA) in 1924 the unit was constituted as follows:
108th (Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Field Brigade, RA • HQ at Swaffham • 411 (Suffolk Yeomanry) Bty at Old Barracks,
Bury St Edmunds • 412 (Suffolk Yeomanry) Bty at
Beccles, later at the Drill Hall, St Peter's Street,
Lowestoft • 429 (Norfolk Yeomanry) Bty at Swaffham, later at Cattle Market Barracks, Norwich • 430 (Norfolk Yeomanry) Bty (Howitzer) at Swaffham The unit was an 'Army' field brigade in
54th (East Anglian) Divisional Area. Lt-Col O. Birkbeck became CO on 24 October 1926, succeeded by Lt-Col B.M.M. Edwards, MC, on 24 October 1931 and by Lt-Col
Sir Charles Rowley, Bt, on 24 October 1935.
Second World War Mobilisation By 1939, it became clear that a new European war was likely to break out and, as a direct result of the
German invasion of Czechoslovakia on 15 March, the doubling of the Territorial Army was authorised, with each unit and formation forming a duplicate. When the TA was mobilised on 1 September, the Norfolk and Suffolk Yeomanry 'Duplicate and Original Regiments' were on annual training at
Chiseldon Camp in Wiltshire, and the 'Norfolk Duplicate Batteries' and 'Lowestoft Contingent' returned to Swaffham. The following day, orders were issued to split the unit into
55th (Suffolk Yeomanry) A/T Rgt at Bury St Edmunds as part of 54th Division, and 65th (Norfolk Yeomanry) A/T Rgt at Swaffham as part of the duplicate
18th Infantry Division then in process of formation. Under the command of Lt-Col W.N. Arnold, the new regiment was organised as follows:
65th (Norfolk Yeomanry) Anti-Tank Regiment • HQ at Swaffham • 257 Bty at Norwich and Wymondham • 258 Bty at Norwich • 259 Bty at Swaffham • 260 Bty at King's Lynn The unit was usually abbreviated as '65 (NY) A/T Rgt' or more familiarly (especially within
7th Armoured Division) as simply the Norfolk Yeomanry. At this date the standard British Army A/T gun was the
2-pounder on a scale of 12 guns per battery. and
Tees rivers) insignia of 50th (Northumbrian) Division The regiment left 18th Division in November 1939 to reinforce
50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division, which was preparing to join the
British Expeditionary Force in France. After training around
Tewkesbury, the regiment embarked on the
Ulster Monarch on 9 February 1940, and by the end of the month was concentrated at
Crèvecœur-le-Grand.
Battle of France When the
Battle of France began on 10 May, the BEF started to advance north into Belgium in accordance with
'Plan D', but the
German Army broke through the
Ardennes, outflanking the BEF and forcing it to withdraw again. By 19 May the regiment was defending
Vimy Ridge near
Arras, with 257 Bty detached to 'Polforce' guarding the Canal Line.
Arras On 21 May the BEF
counter-attacked at Arras, striking south against the German forces cutting westwards towards the sea. Major-General
G. Le Q. Martel of 50th Division attacked with two columns, each consisting of a tank regiment and an infantry battalion with artillery support. 260 Battery under Major Forrester accompanied the Right Column. The advance began at 14.30, without time for reconnaissance, but the column fought its way through
Duisans successfully. Two A/T Troops and two companies of the 8th Bn
Durham Light Infantry were left to hold the village and deal with the prisoners, while the column pushed on.
Warlus and then
Berneville were cleared, but then the advance guard ran into troops of the
7th Panzer Division and
3rd SS Panzer Division Totenkopf, came under heavy machine-gun and mortar fire, and were pushed back to the main body, which was subjected to a 20-minute attack by aircraft. This was followed by German tank attacks, which were driven off by 260 A/T Bty's guns. The divisional historian claimed that 'upwards of twenty tanks were knocked out and left burning n the ground'. Right Column could advance no further, and withdrew with French support in the evening. 2nd Lieutenant Spens distinguished himself in this action and was awarded the
Military Cross (MC). 260 Battery withdrew to
Givenchy, where it was badly bombed on 22 May. By 29 May the Germans were closing up to the
Dunkirk perimeter where the regiment acted as rearguard. The detached 259 Bty was evacuated on 29 and 30 May. The bulk of the regiment destroyed its equipment and got away in boats from Dunkirk on 31 May; 260 Bty followed on 2 June.
Home Defence The regiment reformed at
Knutsford in Cheshire,
Western Desert The regiment served in the
Western Desert Campaign, joining the
7th Armoured Division ('The Desert Rats') with which it served in
Italy and
North West Europe until the end of the war in Europe.
Post war When the TA was reconstituted in 1947, the regiment was reformed in the Anti-Aircraft (AA) role as '''389th (The King's Own Regiment, Norfolk Yeomanry) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA
, with RHQ still at Swaffham. It formed part of 98th (AA) Army Group Royal Artillery in the field army, but this was disbanded in 1948. The abolition of Anti-Aircraft Command in 1955 resulted in a large number of disbandments and mergers among TA AA units. The 389th LAA Rgt merged with 284th (1st East Anglian) (Mixed) Heavy AA Rgt, to form 284th (The King's Royal Regiment, Norfolk Yeomanry) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, RA''', of which the old 284th formed RHQ (at Norwich) and Q Btys, and the Norfolk Yeomanry provided P and R Btys. In 1961 this regiment in turn later merged with
358th (Suffolk Yeomanry) Field Rgt, RA becoming
308th (Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Field Regiment, RA, with RHQ moving to Ipswich. In 1967 this became
202 (The Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Battery Royal Artillery (Volunteers), a battery within the newly raised
100th (Yeomanry) Regiment Royal Artillery (Volunteers). In 2006, 202 (The Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Battery Royal Artillery (Volunteers) re-roled to become No. 677 (Suffolk and Norfolk Yeomanry) Squadron AAC (Volunteers) and is part of
6 Regiment Army Air Corps (Volunteers). ==Insignia==