The
2/3rd Battalion was an
infantryInfantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
battalionA battalion is a military unit of around 300–1,200 soldiers usually consisting of between two and seven companies and typically commanded by either a Lieutenant Colonel or a Colonel...
of the
Australian ArmyThe Australian Army is Australia's military land force. It is part of the Australian Defence Force along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. While the Chief of Defence commands the Australian Defence Force , the Army is commanded by the Chief of Army...
. Raised for service during Second World War as part of the
Second Australian Imperial ForceThe Second Australian Imperial Force was the name given to the volunteer personnel of the Australian Army in World War II. Under the Defence Act , neither the part-time Militia nor the full-time Permanent Military Force could serve outside Australia or its territories unless they volunteered to...
, it was formed in October 1939 in Sydney and was attached to the 16th Brigade, 6th Division. It was one of only two Australian infantry battalions to fight against all the major Axis powers of the war—the
GermansGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
,
ItaliansItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
,
JapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese and
Vichy FrenchVichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
—seeing action in
North AfricaDuring the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
,
GreeceThe Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
,
CreteThe Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
, and
SyriaThe Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
in 1941–42 before returning to Australia following Japan's entry into the war. In 1942–43 the battalion took part in fighting along the
Kokoda TrackThe Kokoda Trail or Track is a single-file foot thoroughfare that runs overland — in a straight line — through the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea...
before returning to Australia where it spent over a year training. In December 1944 the 2/3rd returned to New Guinea to take part in the Aitape–Wewak campaign and remained there until the war ended. Following the end of hostilities, the battalion was disbanded on 8 February 1946 in Brisbane.
Formation
Upon the outbreak of the Second World War, due to the provisions of the
Defence Act (1903) which restricted the deployment of the part-time
MilitiaThe Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen Military Forces, the Militia and, unofficially, the...
to only those areas considered to be Australian territory, the Australian government decided to raise an all volunteer force for service overseas. This force was known as the
Second Australian Imperial ForceThe Second Australian Imperial Force was the name given to the volunteer personnel of the Australian Army in World War II. Under the Defence Act , neither the part-time Militia nor the full-time Permanent Military Force could serve outside Australia or its territories unless they volunteered to...
, and the first division raised as part of it was the 6th Division. As a unit of this formation, the 2/3rd Battalion was formed at
Victoria BarracksVictoria Barracks is an Australian Army base in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Victoria Barracks is located in the suburb of Paddington, between Oxford Street and Moore Park Road...
, Sydney, on 24 October 1939. Along with the 2/1st, 2/2nd and 2/4th Battalions, the 2/3rd were assigned to the 16th Brigade.
The battalion's first commanding officer was Lieutenant Colonel Vivian England—an officer who had served in the First World War and had continued to serve in the
MilitiaThe Australian Army Reserve is a collective name given to the reserve units of the Australian Army. Since the Federation of Australia in 1901, the reserve military force has been known by many names, including the Citizens Forces, the Citizen Military Forces, the Militia and, unofficially, the...
, commanding the
55th BattalionThe 55th Battalion was an infantry battalion of the Australian Army. Raised in 1916 for service during World War I the battalion served on the Western Front until the end of the war, before being briefly amalgamated with the 53rd Battalion and then eventually disbanded in 1919...
. Personnel for the battalion were raised from an area around
New South WalesNew South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
that is known by the Aboriginal name of "The Werriwa". This area is bounded by a line from Sydney to
BegaBega is a town in the south-east of New South Wales, Australia in the Bega Valley Shire. It is the economic centre for the Bega Valley.-Place name:One claim is that place name Bega is derived from the local Aboriginal word meaning "big camping ground"....
in the south, and from Bega, west to the
Snowy MountainsThe Snowy Mountains, known informally as "The Snowies", are the highest Australian mountain range and contain the Australian mainland's highest mountain, Mount Kosciuszko, which reaches 2,228 metres AHD, approximately 7310 feet....
,
Cooma-Education: is Cooma's only public high school, it serves the town and seven of the neighbouring rural towns and villages such as Berridale, Jindabyne, Nimmitabel, Bredbo and Dalgety....
,
CanberraCanberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
,
YassYass is a town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Yass Valley Shire. The name appears to have been derived from an Aboriginal word, "Yarrh" , said to mean 'running water'....
, then north to Sydney through the
GoulburnGoulburn is a provincial city in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Goulburn Mulwaree Council Local Government Area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highway and above sea-level. On Census night 2006, Goulburn had a population of 20,127 people...
and
LiverpoolLiverpool is a suburb in south-western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Liverpool is located 32 km south-west of the Sydney central business district, and is the administrative centre of the local government area of the City of Liverpool...
areas. The men were enlisted from 20 October onwards, and by 3 November 1939 the battalion was formed. The colours chosen for the
Unit Colour PatchUnit Colour Patches are worn on the Slouch Hat in the Australian Army to indicate which unit they are from....
(UCP) were the same as that of the 3rd Battalion, a unit which had served during the First World War before being raised as a Militia formation in 1921. These colours were chocolate over green, although a 3 mm border of gray was added to the border of the UCP to distinguish the battalion from its Militia counterpart which would also go on the serve with distinction later during the war.
Following a brief period of training at
LiverpoolLiverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
and Ingleburn, the battalion took part in a farewell march through Sydney
[The Sydney Morning Herald of 4 January 1940 gave an account of their farewell march: "The long khaki columns thrilled the hearts of Sydney as it had not been so moved for a quarter of a century since that still, spring day in 1914 when the first A.I.F. marched through the same streets on its way to Anzac and imperishable glory; the marching was magnificent." Clift 1980, p. 16.] before sailing in the first troop convoy to leave Australia on 10 January 1940. They disembarked at El Kantara on the
Suez CanalThe Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
on 14 February 1940 and from there they were trucked to their camp at Julis in
PalestinePalestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
, where they undertook further training.
North Africa
The first engagement that Australian troops were involved in during the Second World War came at
BardiaThe Battle of Bardia was fought over three days between 3 and 5 January 1941, as part of Operation Compass, the first military operation of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. It was the first battle of the war in which an Australian Army formation took part, the first to be...
, a major Italian military outpost in the north of
LibyaLibya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
. The 16th Brigade broke through Bardia's western defensive perimeter at dawn on 3 January 1941, when the 2/1st Battalion breached the wire defences and swung left before advancing. The 2/2nd Battalion followed suit, swinging to the right, and the 2/3rd then moved straight through the breach. Meanwhile, the 17th Brigade led a diversion to the south. Although the 16th Brigade was able to capture Bardia in the late afternoon of 4 January, continued resistance meant that fighting did not cease until the next morning. Some 40,000 Italians were captured along with "...large quantities of arms, equipment, rations and alcohol. All of which was put to good use by the Australians." During this period, the 2/3rd lost five officers and 56 men killed or wounded.
After this, the Allied forces advanced to the fortified naval outpost of
TobrukTobruk or Tubruq is a city, seaport, and peninsula on Libya's eastern Mediterranean coast, near the border with Egypt. It is the capital of the Butnan District and has a population of 120,000 ....
. 6th Division attacked the perimeter defences early on 21 January, following a week of continuous bombardment from both land and sea. The 2/3rd Battalion was tasked with breaching the outer Italian defences for the 2/1st Battalion to pass through. Following the initial breakthrough, the 2/3rd then advanced west along the inner ring of defences, attacking a number of Italian posts as they went. Tobruk fell the next day, with the Italians surrendering to the commander of the
19th BrigadeThe 19th Brigade was a formation of the Australian Army during World War II as part of the 6th Division. Formed in April 1940 as a result of the reorganisation of the Second Australian Imperial Force when the infantry brigades composition was reduced from four to three battalions. The fourth...
. The Italian flag was taken down and in the absence of an Australian flag, a signaler from the 2/4th Battalion tied his
slouch hatA slouch hat is a wide-brimmed felt or cloth hat with a chinstrap, most commonly worn as part of a military uniform. It is a survivor of the felt hats worn by certain 18th century armies. Since then, the slouch hat has been worn by military personnel from many nations including Australia, Britain,...
to the flag staff and hauled it up to the top. The battalion's losses during the fighting for Tobruk were seven officers and 50 men killed or wounded.
Following the capture of the town, the 2/3rd garrisoned Tobruk, although B Company was detached to the 19th Brigade for its assault on Derna, and remained there after its capture on 30 January. Prime Minister
Robert MenziesSir Robert Gordon Menzies, , Australian politician, was the 12th and longest-serving Prime Minister of Australia....
broke his journey from Australia to England to address the troops after the capture of Tobruk. On 7 March 1941, the battalion left Tobruk, along with the rest of the 6th Division, to bolster the Allied defences in
GreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
.
Greece
On 18 March 1941, the 2/3rd Battalion sailed from
AlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
aboard
HMS GloucesterEleven vessels, and one planned, of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS Gloucester, after Gloucester, the city in England.* The first Gloucester was a 54-gun ship launched in 1654 and wrecked in 1682....
, arriving in Greece and landing in the port of Piraeus on the following day, after a 22-hour voyage in which their convoy was attacked by Axis air-raids. After the
invasion of the countryThe Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
on 6 April, they were moved north to attempt to turn back the German forces. The following day they occupied Veria, however, and on 12 April the 6th Division was grouped together with the New Zealand 2nd Division and a lone British brigade to form an Anzac Corps. This formation did not last long however, as the Greek government requested Allied forces withdraw from Greece on 16 April before ceasing organised resistance on 18 April. Due to a series of withdrawals elsewhere, the battalion was forced to pull back from its positions at Veria and did not come into contact with the Germans until 18 April when they attempted to block passage of the Tempe Gorge. Fighting alongside the 2/2nd Battalion and New Zealanders, the rearguard action was successful and enabled the Allies to withdraw to the south.
[Brigadier Arthur Allen]Major General Arthur Samuel "Tubby" Allen CB CBE DSO VD was an Australian soldier. During World War II he reached the rank of Major General and commanded Allied forces in the Syria-Lebanon and New Guinea campaigns...
, commander of the 16th Brigade, later wrote of this encounter: "It was a fantastic battle. Everyone was on top, with no time to dig in, and all in the front line, including artillery, Bren carriers and infantry, as well as headquarters, with transport only yards in the rear. Some confusion could be expected in the circumstances, with every weapon firing and aircraft almost continually strafing from above. If you saw it in the cinema you would say the author had never seen battle." Clift 1980, pp.139–140.
With the Germans enjoying numberical superiority on the ground, and with the
LuftwaffeLuftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
in total control of the skies, they then captured the township of Tempe. Fierce rearguard fighting continued though, as the Australian and New Zealand forces withdrew to a new defensive line at
ThermopylaeThermopylae is a location in Greece where a narrow coastal passage existed in antiquity. It derives its name from its hot sulphur springs. "Hot gates" is also "the place of hot springs and cavernous entrances to Hades"....
. However, with the situation deteriorating an official evacuation plan was issued on 21 April, and on 25 April—
Anzac DayAnzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand, commemorated by both countries on 25 April every year to honour the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War I. It now more broadly commemorates all...
—parties of evacuating Allied troops marched through
AthensAthens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state...
on their way to the coast.The 2/3rd Battalion subsequently embarked from
KalamataKalamata is the second-largest city of the Peloponnese in southern Greece. The capital and chief port of the Messenia prefecture, it lies along the Nedon River at the head of the Messenian Gulf...
on 27 April.
Crete
While the majority of the 2/3rd Battalion was successfully evacuated to Egypt, and eventually returned to the camp they had previously occupied in Palestine, 141 men were evacuated to the island of
CreteCrete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
instead, after the transport ship they were on was sunk. On Crete they were formed into a composite battalion with men from other units of the 16th Brigade, and together the unit became known as the 16th Brigade Composite Battalion. With only limited small arms and ammunition they moved to positions above Kalives on the shores of Suda Bay to undertake garrison duties. Following the
German invasionThe Battle of Crete was a battle during World War II on the Greek island of Crete. It began on the morning of 20 May 1941, when Nazi Germany launched an airborne invasion of Crete under the code-name Unternehmen Merkur...
of the island on 20 May 1941, some of these troops saw direct action against German paratroopers and after the Allied evacuation from the island a week later, they undertook active patrols around the island, before being evacuated on 31 May 1941 aboard
HMS PhoebeHMS Phoebe may refer to:, 36, a fifth-rate frigate launched in 1795., 51, a fourth-rate ship of the line launched in 1854., a Pearl class second class cruiser launched in 1890., an M class destroyer launched in 1916., a Dido-class light cruiser launched in 1939., a Leander class frigate launched in...
. They arrived in Alexandria on 1 June 1941.
Syria
Australian troops from the 7th Division were already fighting in the
Syria-Lebanon CampaignThe Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
when the reformed 2/3rd Battalion, along with the 2/5th Battalion and the 6th Division Cavalry Regiment were committed as reinforcements. In a bitter campaign that lasted 28 days the
Vichy FrenchVichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
and
French colonial forcesThe French Colonial Forces , commonly called La Coloniale, was a general designation for the military forces that garrisoned in the French colonial empire from the late 17th century until 1960. They were recruited from mainland France or from the French settler and indigenous populations of the...
attempted to resist the Allied invasion. During this time the battalion took part in battles at
DamascusThe Battle of Damascus was the final action of the Allied advance on Damascus in Syria during the Syria-Lebanon campaign in World War II.-Background:...
on 20–22 June; at Jebel Mazar on 24–28 June; and
DamourThe Battle of Damour was the final major operation of the Australian forces during the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II.-Background:In 1941, Damour was the French administrative capital...
on 6–10 July. Following the armistice on 14 July, the troops remained in Syria until January 1942 preparing defences and undertaking other garrison duties.
Ceylon
Following Japan's entry into the war in December 1941 the decision was made to bring the 6th Division back to bolster the Allied defences in the Pacific. Consequently the 2/3rd Battalion left the Middle East on 10 March 1942, aboard the steamer
Otrango. The original intention was that they would be sent to reinforce
JavaJava is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
, however, while they were at sea concerns about a Japanese attack on Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), prompted the divertion of the 16th and 17th Brigades to
ColomboColombo is the largest city of Sri Lanka. It is located on the west coast of the island and adjacent to Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte, the capital of Sri Lanka. Colombo is often referred to as the capital of the country, since Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte is a satellite city of Colombo...
, and they arrived there on 21 March. The freighter
Ben Rennies, carrying the battalion's vehicles arrived shortly afterwards and the 2/3rd then took up defensive positions in the southeast part of the island, which was considered to be the most likely location for a Japanese invasion force to land.
On 5 April, a Japanese naval force sortied from the recently conquered
Andaman IslandsThe Andaman Islands are a group of Indian Ocean archipelagic islands in the Bay of Bengal between India to the west, and Burma , to the north and east...
and launched a series of attacks by carrier-based aircraft on Colombo and
TrincomaleeTrincomalee is a port city in Eastern Province, Sri Lanka and lies on the east coast of the island, about 113 miles south of Jaffna. It has a population of approximately 100,000 . The city is built on a peninsula, which divides the inner and outer harbours. Overlooking the Kottiyar Bay,...
. Another attack occurred on 9 April. Little damage was done on land, however both the British and Australian navies suffered losses. Regardless, the Japanese failed to sustain their initial momentum and the expected invasion did not occur. Nevertheless, men from the 2/3rd Battalion were kept busy for the remainder of their time preparing defences, manning anti-aircraft positions and undertaking jungle training, during which time they received instruction in lessons learned from operations in
MalayaThe Malayan Campaign was a campaign fought by Allied and Japanese forces in Malaya, from 8 December 1941 – 31 January 1942 during the Second World War. The campaign was dominated by land battles between British Commonwealth army units, and the Imperial Japanese Army...
and
SingaporeThe Battle of Singapore was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of the Second World War when the Empire of Japan invaded the Allied stronghold of Singapore. Singapore was the major British military base in Southeast Asia and nicknamed the "Gibraltar of the East"...
. The men were taught how to use the jungle "...to 'melt' into the foliage; to retrace their steps at night; to use camouflage properly; to detect human presence by crushed twigs and disturbed leaf mould; to move silently over undergrowth. To build shelters; and to discern human from animal sounds."
In July British forces were sent from
IndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
to relieve the Australian troops in Ceylon. Subsequently preparations were made for the 2/3rd Battalion to return to Australia, and after embarking upon the SS
Westernland, they arrived in
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
on 8 August 1942, having returned via the southern route away from the Japanese submarines patrolling the east coast. After this, the troops all received two weeks home leave, staggered from their arrival. The final group had their leave cut short after only three days, however, when they were recalled by urgent telegram. The 16th Brigade was again on the move, this time to
Port MoresbyPort Moresby , or Pot Mosbi in Tok Pisin, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea . It is located on the shores of the Gulf of Papua, on the southeastern coast of the island of New Guinea, which made it a prime objective for conquest by the Imperial Japanese forces during 1942–43...
in
New GuineaNew Guinea is the world's second largest island, after Greenland, covering a land area of 786,000 km2. Located in the southwest Pacific Ocean, it lies geographically to the east of the Malay Archipelago, with which it is sometimes included as part of a greater Indo-Australian Archipelago...
, where the fighting against the Japanese along the
Kokoda TrackThe Kokoda Trail or Track is a single-file foot thoroughfare that runs overland — in a straight line — through the Owen Stanley Range in Papua New Guinea...
was reaching a critical stage. After a short voyage, the brigade arrived at Port Moresby on 21 September 1942.
Kokoda Track campaign
Following their arrival at Port Moresby, the 16th Brigade along with the
25th BrigadeThe 25th Brigade was a brigade-sized infantry unit of the Australian Army that served during the Second World War. Raised in July 1940 and consisting of three infantry battalions, the 25th Brigade served in the United Kingdom, the Middle East, New Guinea and Borneo before being disbanded in...
, prepared to relieve the forces on the Kokoda Track. With the Australians having finally halted Japanese advance, the fresh troops would be tasked with launching a counterattack in order to drive the Japanese back to Buna in the north. Consequently, throughout October, November and into December the 2/3rd Battalion took part in three major actions: Eora Creek (22–28 October), Oivi (5–12 November), and on the Sanananda Track (21 November–19 December).
On 3 October
General Douglas MacArthurGeneral of the Army Douglas MacArthur was an American general and field marshal of the Philippine Army. He was a Chief of Staff of the United States Army during the 1930s and played a prominent role in the Pacific theater during World War II. He received the Medal of Honor for his service in the...
spoke to the 16th Brigade's commander, Brigadier John Lloyd, at Ower's Corner, at the foot of the Kokoda Track: "Lloyd, by some act of God your Brigade has been chosen for this job. The eyes of the Western world are upon you. I have every confidence in you and your men. Good luck and don't stop." The 16th Brigade arrived at Templeton's Crossing on 19 October, just three days behind the 2/25th and the
2/33rd BattalionsThe 2/33rd Battalion was a infantry battalion of the Australian Army during the Second World War. Formed as part of the Second Australian Imperial Force in the United Kingdom on 27 June 1940 as the 72nd Battalion to create the 25th Brigade...
, whom they then relieved. The following day the 16th Brigade continued the advance but found that the Japanese had withdrawn to Eora Creek, where they had established a strong defensive position.
Here the Japanese held the high ground in well-concealed positions that had clear fields of fire into the narrow gorge below. With no other options, the 16th Brigade was forced to assault the Japanese defences frontally, advancing straight up the gorge. Amidst torrential rain and stiff defence, progress was slow as each defensive position had to be dealt with singly. As the water level in the creek rose steadily, the troops came under heavy mortar fire and were attacked with grenades lobbed from the heights above. The supply situation grew desperate too, however, by 28 October the 2/3rd Battalion had managed to work its way around the Japanese right flank in preparation for an attack. In the afternoon, the battalion launched its attack, breaking through the Japanese outposts and into the main position. The Japanese defenders were overwhelmed and many of them abandoned their weapons as they fled. That night, the remaining Japanese withdrew from the position. The 16th Brigade lost 72 killed and 154 wounded in this action.
Regardless, with his superiors in Australia dissatisfied by the counter-offensive's rate of progress, the 7th Division's commander, Major-General 'Tubby' Allen, was relieved of his command the day before the Australian forces won through at Eora Creek. Following the capture of Eora Creek, Japanese resistance decreased and by 31 September the 16th Brigade advanced along the eastern fork of the Track through Missima without opposition. On 2 November they passed through the now abandoned village of Kokoda. Three days later, as the Australians advanced towards the Kumusi River, the 2/3rd Battalion went into battle at Oivi, after coming up against an entrenched force holding the high ground from Oivi to Gorari. The Japanese counter-attacked the next day and as fighting continued through to 6 November, Major General George Vasey, the new divisional commander, sent the 25th Brigade and the 2/1st Battalion on a successful attack against the Japanese rear at Gorari. The Japanese at Oivi, their supply and withdrawal route cut, were then forced to retreat.
The 2/3rd Battalion's final involvement in the campaign came as the 16th Brigade advanced towards Sanananda in November. They left the Wairopi area on 16 November, with the battalion second in order of march. Tired and drained from the exertions of the last two months, the advance across the swamps of the coastal plain proved heavy work. On the first day they made good 6 miles (9.7 km), however, heavy rains the following day and a break down in the resupply situation resulted in a large number of men falling behind due to exhaustion. On 19 November, the 2/3rd spearheaded the brigade advance to the coast. Several Japanese stragglers were taken prisoner and a number of minor contacts followed, however, the Japanese defenders withdrew before the Australians could shake out to conduct an assault.
The following morning, the brigade reached the junction of the Sananada and Cape Killerton trails, about 2 miles (3.2 km) from the coast. After the 2/1st Battalion was attacked, the 2/3rd Battalion took part in a brigade flanking attack around the Japanese position to the right, which forced the Japanese to fall back. The action, however, had severely depleted the brigade to the point where, with less than 1,000 fit men, it was unable to continue offensive operations. Thereafter activity was limited to patrolling and maintaining a defensive perimeter. In early December the 16th Brigade was relieved by the
30th BrigadeThe 30th Brigade was a brigade-sized infantry unit of the Australian Army. Formed in December 1941, as part of the Militia, the unit was raised for service during World War II. Sent to New Guinea in early March 1942 the brigade initially provided garrison troops to Port Moresby before later taking...
. The 2/3rd Battalion iself was relieved on 6 December, returning to Poppondetta with a strength of just six officers and 67 other ranks, before being evacuated back to Port Moresby by plane on 23 December 1942. They were subsequently returned to Australia shortly afterwards for leave and to reorganise.
Australia
After a short leave the 6th Division came together again in late January 1943 on the Atherton Tablelands to begin training, and to convert to the more austere
Jungle establishmentThe Jungle Division was a military organisation adopted in 1943 by the Australian Army during the Second World War. This organisation was a much lighter version of the standard British-pattern infantry division used during previous campaigns in the deserts of North Africa and was optimised to meet...
. Under this establishment, the size of the battalion was reduced by one officer and 106 other ranks, giving the battalion a total of 803 men of all ranks. At this time, a camp was built from scratch at Wondecla, but it was 12 months before all the sick and wounded returned to the battalion's ranks to bring it up to full strength. As the battalion began to reform, a number of men who had performed well in the preceding campaigns were recommended for
commissioningAn officer is a member of an armed force or uniformed service who holds a position of authority. Commissioned officers derive authority directly from a sovereign power and, as such, hold a commission charging them with the duties and responsibilities of a specific office or position...
and were subsequently sent to an Officer Training Unit at Woodside, in
South AustraliaSouth Australia is a state of Australia in the southern central part of the country. It covers some of the most arid parts of the continent; with a total land area of , it is the fourth largest of Australia's six states and two territories.South Australia shares borders with all of the mainland...
. Along with training there was time for recreation—swimming carnivals, boxing tournaments and a 6th Division rugby league championship in which the 2/3rd Battalion were victorious, beating the 2/3rd Machine Gun Battalion in the final. The team captain,
Col WindonColin Windon was an Australian soldier and a state and national representative rugby union player who captained the Wallabies in six Test matches in 1951...
, later went on to play for and captain the
WallabiesThe Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
.
During this time the battalion received a number of reinforcements from its associated Militia unit, the 3rd Battalion (The Werriwa Regiment). This unit had been fighting in New Guinea as part of the 30th Brigade, with whom it had served on the Kokoda Track alongside the 2/3rd as well as the 39th and 49th Battalions, before being returned to Australia, where it had been disbanded. Other reinforcements also arrived from the 16th Battalion.
Aitape–Wewak campaign
Due to a combination of political and strategic decisions, it was almost two years before the battalion went into combat again. In late 1944 the decision was made that in order to free up American troops for operations in the
PhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Australian forces would take over responsibility for operations around
AitapeAitape is a small town of about 8,000 people on the north coast of Papua New Guinea in the Sandaun Province. It is a coastal settlement that is almost equidistant from the provincial capitals of Wewak and Vanimo, and marks the midpoint of the highway between these two capitals...
in New Guinea. The 6th Division returned to New Guinea in November 1944, with the final brigade arriving on 31 December 1944. Although basically cut off from resupply, there were around 35,000 Japanese troops in the area, holding the coast past
WewakWewak is the capital of the East Sepik province of Papua New Guinea. It is located on the northern coast of the island of New Guinea. It is the largest town between Madang and Jayapura. It is the see city of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Wewak....
and into the interior. Even though they would have eventually been starved out, the Japanese put up heavy resistance to the Australians' primary tactic of aggressive patrolling.
Initially, 16th Brigade was held in divisional reserve, occupying a defensive position west of the Raihu River, however, in February 1945 it was tasked with securing a forward supply base near Dogreto Bay and clearing up to the Anumb River, about 8 miles (12.9 km) to the east of the river. They came up against only minor opposition and by 23 February they had crossed the Anumb; less than a month later they occupied the coastal town of But another 6 miles (9.7 km) east and removed the Japanese from the Dagua area. During this time, contact with the Japanese was limited to small-scale actions and the main cause of Australian casualties was disease and accidents. In one incident, seven men from the 2/3rd drowned when Danmap River flooded amidst a torrential downpour.
On 10 May Wewak was captured and the 16th Brigade became involved in pursuing the Japanese defenders that had withdrawn inland. The brigade was occupied in this regard until 11 August when offensive operations ceased, after word was received that the Japanese had entered into ceasefire talks.
Disbandment
The 2/3rd Battalion disbanded in Brisbane on 8 February 1946 as one of the most decorated battalions of the Second AIF. They had fought all the major Axis powers—the Italians, Germans, Vichy French and Japanese—and in doing so, alongside the Australian 2/5th Battalion they were the only Allied troops able to make this claim. During its service, the battalion lost 203 men killed and 432 wounded. Members of the 2/3rd received the following decorations: four
Distinguished Service OrderThe Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
s, 16
Military CrossThe Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces; and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries....
es, 12
Distinguished Conduct MedalThe Distinguished Conduct Medal was an extremely high level award for bravery. It was a second level military decoration awarded to other ranks of the British Army and formerly also to non-commissioned personnel of other Commonwealth countries.The medal was instituted in 1854, during the Crimean...
s, 30
Military MedalThe Military Medal was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other services, and formerly also to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land....
s, two
British Empire MedalThe Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Meritorious Service, usually known as the British Empire Medal , is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown...
s and 73 Mentioned in Despatches.
In 1948, the Militia units that had fought during the war were re-raised as part of the Citizens Military Force (CMF) and it was decided to entrust the
battle honourA battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags , uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible....
s of the Second AIF units to their associated CMF units. As a result, the 2/3rd Battalion's battle honours were passed to the 3rd Battalion (The Werriwa Regiment), which was reformed around Canberra. In 1960, with the introduction of the
Pentropic divisionThe Pentropic organisation was a military organisation used by the Australian Army between 1960 and 1965. It was based on the United States Army's pentomic organisation and involved reorganising most of the Army's combat units into units based on five elements, rather than the previous three or...
into the Australian Army, the CMF was reorganised and the 3rd Battalion (The Werriwa Regiment) was reduced to company strength, forming 'C' Company, 3rd Battalion,
Royal New South Wales RegimentThe Royal New South Wales Regiment is a reserve infantry regiment of the Australian Army based in the state of New South Wales. The regiment consists of four battalions:-Organisation:*1st/19th Battalion*2nd/17th Battalion*4th/3rd Battalion...
(3 RNSWR). In 1965, following the abandonment of the Pentropic divisional structure, the 3rd Battalion was reformed in its own right as the individual companies were split up to form new battalions with the old regionally based numerical designations. In 1987, however, following another reorganisation of the Army Reserve which saw a reduction in the number of the infantry battalions across Australia, 3 RNSWR was linked with 4 RNSWR to become
4th/3rd Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment4th/3rd Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment is a Reserve light infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 4/3 RNSWR has been deployed on active service on many peacekeeping operations and exercises within Australia and around the world...
(4/3 RNSWR).
Battle honours
The 2/3rd Battalion received the following
battle honourA battle honour is an award of a right by a government or sovereign to a military unit to emblazon the name of a battle or operation on its flags , uniforms or other accessories where ornamentation is possible....
s for its service during the war:
- North Africa
During the Second World War, the North African Campaign took place in North Africa from 10 June 1940 to 13 May 1943. It included campaigns fought in the Libyan and Egyptian deserts and in Morocco and Algeria and Tunisia .The campaign was fought between the Allies and Axis powers, many of whom had...
, Bardia 1941The Battle of Bardia was fought over three days between 3 and 5 January 1941, as part of Operation Compass, the first military operation of the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War. It was the first battle of the war in which an Australian Army formation took part, the first to be...
, Capture of TobrukThe siege of Tobruk was a confrontation that lasted 240 days between Axis and Allied forces in North Africa during the Western Desert Campaign of the Second World War...
, Syria 1941The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Vichy French-controlled Syria and Lebanon, in June–July 1941, during World War II. Time Magazine referred to the fighting as a "mixed show" while it was taking place and the campaign remains little known, even...
, Damascus 1941The Battle of Damascus was the final action of the Allied advance on Damascus in Syria during the Syria-Lebanon campaign in World War II.-Background:...
, Dimas, DamourThe Battle of Damour was the final major operation of the Australian forces during the Syria-Lebanon Campaign of World War II.-Background:In 1941, Damour was the French administrative capital...
, Greece 1941The Battle of Greece is the common name for the invasion and conquest of Greece by Nazi Germany in April 1941. Greece was supported by British Commonwealth forces, while the Germans' Axis allies Italy and Bulgaria played secondary roles...
, Mount Olympus, Tempe Gorge, South-West Pacific 1942–1945The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
, Kokoda TrailThe Kokoda Track campaign or Kokoda Trail campaign was part of the Pacific War of World War II. The campaign consisted of a series of battles fought between July and November 1942 between Japanese and Allied—primarily Australian—forces in what was then the Australian territory of Papua...
, Eora Creek–Templeton's Crossing II, Oivi–Gorari, Buna–GonaThe Battle of Buna–Gona was a battle in the New Guinea campaign, a major part of the Pacific campaign of World War II. On 16 November 1942, Australian and United States forces attacked the main Japanese beachheads in New Guinea, at Buna, Sanananda and Gona. Both forces were riddled by disease and...
and Sanananda Road.[These battle honours are carried today by the 4/3 RNSWR]4th/3rd Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment is a Reserve light infantry battalion of the Australian Army. 4/3 RNSWR has been deployed on active service on many peacekeeping operations and exercises within Australia and around the world...
.
Commanding officers
- Lieutenant Colonel Vivian England (1939–1941);
- Lieutenant Colonel Donald Lamb (1941);
- Lieutenant Colonel John Stevenson (1941–1943);
- Lieutenant Colonel Ian Hutchison (1943–1946).