The 11th Division was an

Australian Army The Australian Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of Australia, a part of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) along with the Royal Australian Navy and the Royal Australian Air Force. The Army is commanded by the Chief of Army (Austral ...

unit formed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

by the renaming of

Milne Force Milne Force was a garrison Australian Army force formed in July 1942 during the World War II which controlled allied naval, land and air units in the region of Milne Bay, in the Territory of Papua. The force was responsible for constructing airstr ...

in December 1942. Predominately a

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

formation, the division's main role during the war was as a base command headquarters, although elements saw action in

New Guinea New Guinea (; Hiri Motu Hiri Motu, also known as Police Motu, Pidgin Motu, or just Hiri, is a language of Papua New Guinea, which is spoken in surrounding areas of Port Moresby (Capital of Papua New Guinea). It is a simplified version of ...

against Japanese forces during the

Finisterre Range campaign The Markham Valley, Ramu Valley and Finisterre Range campaigns were a series of battles within the broader New Guinea campaign of World War II. The campaigns began with an Allied offensive in the Ramu Valley, from 19 September 1943, and conclud ...

and in

New Britain New Britain ( tpi, Niu Briten) is the largest island in the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Islands Region of Papua New Guinea. It is separated from New Guinea by a northwest corner of the Solomon Sea (or with an island hop of Umboi the Dam ...

. It was disbanded in July 1946.

History

In July 1942, a headquarters was raised to command the units that had been sent to

Milne Bay Milne Bay is a large bay in Milne Bay Province, south-eastern Papua New Guinea. More than long and over wide, Milne Bay is a sheltered deep-water harbor accessible via Ward Hunt Strait. It is surrounded by the heavily wooded Stirling Range to t ...

, to establish a series of airfields there after the

Battle of the Coral Sea The Battle of the Coral Sea, from 4 to 8 May 1942, was a major naval battle between the Imperial Japanese Navy (IJN) and naval and air forces of the United States and Australia. Taking place in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, the batt ...

. The majority of the staff for this headquarters came from the 1st Division, and at the time of its establishment it was called "C Force" and became

in August 1942. Only a limited number of troops were assigned, with the first elements being two companies of

troops from the 55th Battalion, bolstered later by the arrival of the 7th Infantry Brigade and then the 18th Infantry Brigade, a veteran

Second Australian Imperial Force The Second Australian Imperial Force (2nd AIF, or Second AIF) was the name given to the volunteer expeditionary force of the Australian Army in the Second World War. It was formed following the declaration of war on Nazi Germany, with an initial ...

unit. Throughout late August and early September, the Japanese attempted to land troops to capture the airfields and in the

Battle of Milne Bay The Battle of Milne Bay (25 August – 7 September 1942), also known as Operation RE or the Battle of Rabi (ラビの戦い) by the Japanese, was a battle of the Pacific campaign of World War II. Japanese marines, known as ''Kaigun Tokubet ...

were defeated by the defending Milne Force elements. In October, the 17th Infantry Brigade arrived to relieved the 18th, which was despatched to Buna in December 1942. It was decided that the formation would assume a more active role and in December 1942, Milne Force was renamed the 11th Division. Upon establishment, the division was commanded by

Major-General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

Cyril Clowes Lieutenant General Cyril Albert Clowes, (11 March 1892 – 19 May 1968) was an Australian soldier. He won the first land victory against the Japanese in the Second World War, at the Battle of Milne Bay, New Guinea. Like many other senior offic ...

. It remained around Milne Bay until January 1943, when the 5th Division arrived to relieve it and the division was transferred to

Port Moresby (; Tok Pisin: ''Pot Mosbi''), also referred to as Pom City or simply Moresby, is the capital and largest city of Papua New Guinea. It is one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific (along with Jayapura) outside of Australia and New Z ...

. At Moresby, the 11th Division headquarters relieved the 6th Division staff and took the base units, including the 7th Brigade, under command. A further move occurred in July 1943, when the divisional headquarters was flown to Dobodura, assuming responsibility for the area between Oro Bay and Buna from the US 41st Infantry Division. The division commanded the 6th and 29th Infantry Brigades, both Militia formations. The 29th was transferred to the 3rd Division in August to take part in the fighting around

Salamaua Salamaua () was a small town situated on the northeastern coastline of Papua New Guinea, in Salamaua Rural LLG, Morobe province. The settlement was built on a minor isthmus between the coast with mountains on the inland side and a headland. The c ...

11th Division commander at Dobodura 1943

In September 1943, Major-General

Allan Boase Lieutenant general (Australia), Lieutenant General Allan Joseph Boase, (19 February 1894 – 1 January 1964) was a soldier in the Australian Army, who served in the First World War and was a general during the Second World War. Early life ...

took command of the division. The following month division came under the control of II Corps having previously been assigned to

I Corps I Corps, 1st Corps, or First Corps may refer to: France * 1st Army Corps (France) * I Cavalry Corps (Grande Armée), a cavalry unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars * I Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French A ...

(and before that

New Guinea Force New Guinea Force was a military command unit for Australian, United States and native troops from the Territories of Papua and New Guinea serving in the New Guinea campaign during World War II. Formed in April 1942, when the Australian First Arm ...

). The divisional headquarters moved to

Lae Lae () is the capital of Morobe Province and is the second-largest city in Papua New Guinea. It is located near the delta of the Markham River and at the start of the Highlands Highway, which is the main land transport corridor between the Highl ...

in February 1944, relieving the 5th Division, which was transferred to

Finschhafen Finschhafen is a town east of Lae on the Huon Peninsula in Morobe Province of Papua New Guinea. The town is commonly misspelt as Finschafen or Finschaven. During World War II, the town was also referred to as Fitch Haven in the logs of some U.S ...

to relieve the 9th Division. At Lae, the division resumed the base command with the 29th Brigade as its only fighting formation. In April 1944, the corps' headquarters moved to Dumpu and it later relieved the 7th Division, which had been fighting a campaign through the Markham and Ramu Valleys and into the Finisterre Ranges. Assuming control of the 15th and 18th Infantry Brigades, the division continued the advance towards

Madang Madang (old German name: ''Friedrich-Wilhelmshafen'') is the capital of Madang Province and is a town with a population of 27,420 (in 2005) on the north coast of Papua New Guinea. It was first settled by the Germans in the 19th century. Histor ...

, linking with the 5th Division around Bogadjim, before being moved back to Wau in early May 1944, leaving its divisional carrier company at Dumpu and transferring several units to the 5th Division. Headquarters returned to Lae in this time, although the 6th Infantry Brigade was pushed forward to Bulolo in June 1944. Following this, the divisional headquarters was relieved by the 3rd Division in July 1944 and returned to Australia, later to be reconstituted on the

Atherton Tablelands The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. The principal river flowing across the plateau is the Barron River. It was dammed to form an irrigation reservoir named Lake Tinar ...

around Kairi, in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

. In August, the division moved to Mapee. The 11th became one of six Australian divisions converted to the

Jungle division The Jungle division was a military organisation adopted in early 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 campaig ...

establishment. The division later fought a brief campaign on

in the last year of the war, landing at Jacquinot Bay and taking over from the 5th Division in July 1945. On New Britain, the division assumed command of the 4th and 13th Infantry Brigades. These formations pushed towards Wide Bay and Open Bay, as the Australians sought to contain the much larger Japanese garrison on the

Gazelle Peninsula The Gazelle Peninsula is a large peninsula in northeastern East New Britain, Papua New Guinea located on the island of New Britain within the Bismarck Archipelago, situated in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. The Rabaul caldera is located on t ...

, rather than carry out a direct assault on the main Japanese position at

Rabaul Rabaul () is a township in the East New Britain province of Papua New Guinea, on the island of New Britain. It lies about 600 kilometres to the east of the island of New Guinea. Rabaul was the provincial capital and most important settlement in ...

. In August, the war came to an end and the 11th Division entered Rabaul and oversaw the surrender of the Japanese garrison. Division headquarters remained in Rabaul until late April 1946 during which its constituent units and elements of its staff were repatriated to Australia in individual drafts. On 25 April 1946, its remaining cadre of 20 personnel embarked on SS ''Ormiston'', bound for Sydney. The disbandment of the 11th Division was completed by 1 July 1946, when the last personnel marched out for demobilisation. Some personnel from the division later served in the 67th Infantry Battalion, undertaking occupation duties as part of the

British Commonwealth Occupation Force The British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) was the British Commonwealth taskforce consisting of Australian, British, Indian and New Zealand military forces in occupied Japan, from 1946 until the end of occupation in 1952. At its peak, t ...

in Japan.

Divisional units

The following units were assigned to the 11th Division during the war: * 7th Infantry Brigade (October 1942 – January 1943, February–July 1943 & July–August 1944) * 18th Infantry Brigade (October 1942 – December 1942 & April–May 1944) * 14th Infantry Brigade (February–March 1943) * 15th Infantry Brigade (February–May 1943 & April 1944) * 30th Infantry Brigade (February–March 1943) * 6th Infantry Brigade (July 1943 – April 1944) * 29th Infantry Brigade (July–April 1943 & March–September 1944) * 4th Infantry Brigade (June–August 1945) * 13th Infantry Brigade (June–August 1945) * 2/6th Armoured Regiment (January–April 1943) * 2/1st Pioneer Battalion (February 1943) * 2/8th Armoured Regiment (April–July 1943) * 15th Battalion (July–August 1943) * 1st New Guinea Infantry Battalion (June–August 1945) * 158th Infantry Regiment (

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

) (February–April 1943)

Commanding officers

The following officers commanded the 11th Division: *

Brigadier Brigadier is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several thousand soldiers. In ...

Murray Moten Brigadier Murray John Moten, (3 July 1899 – 14 September 1953) was a senior officer in the Australian Army during World War II who commanded the 2/27th Battalion during the Syria-Lebanon campaign in 1941, and the 17th Brigade during the Sal ...

* Major-General Arthur Allen * Major-General

* Major-General

Alan Ramsay Major General Sir Alan Hollick Ramsay, (12 March 1895 – 19 September 1973) was an Australian educator and a senior officer in the Australian Army. Having served as an officer in the First World War, he commanded the 5th and 11th Divisions d ...

* Major-General

Kenneth Eather Major General Kenneth William Eather, (6 July 1901 – 9 May 1993) was a senior Australian Army officer who served during the Second World War. Eather led a battalion in the Battle of Bardia, a brigade on the Kokoda Track campaign and a divisio ...

Notes

References

* * * * {{Australian WW2 Divs Infantry divisions of Australia Australian World War II divisions Military units and formations established in 1942 Military units and formations disestablished in 1946 1946 disestablishments in Australia 1942 establishments in Australia Military units and formations of the British Empire in World War II

History

Divisional units

Commanding officers

See also

Notes

References