The 15 Field Squadron is a Field Squadron of the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

a part of the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

based in

Wimbish Wimbish is a village and civil parish within Uttlesford, in Essex, England. The first recorded mention of the village was in 1042, when it was referred to as Winebisc. It was subsequently referred to as Wimbeis in the Domesday Book Domesday ...

Summary

The current title of this unit is 15 Fd Sqn (EOD&S) and is located at Carver Barracks, Essex. Its previous title was 15 Field Squadron (Search) and was located at Claro Barracks, Ripon before it was disbanded in 2013. 15 Field Squadron (Search) is a specialist counter- IED search squadron, part of 36 Engineer Regiment (Search), which itself comes under command of 29 EOD & Search Group, under control of 8 Force Engineer Brigade. Whilst it is co-located in Claro Barracks, Ripon, alongside 21 Engineer Regiment, its own Regimental Headquarters is 36 Engineer Regiment (Search) located in

Maidstone Maidstone is the largest Town status in the United Kingdom, town in Kent, England, of which it is the county town. Maidstone is historically important and lies 32 miles (51 km) east-south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the c ...

, Kent. The squadron is one of only five specialist search squadrons within the UK Armed Forces and is at the forefront of the fight to defeat

improvised explosive device (IED) An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached to a detonating mecha ...

threat to forces deployed on operations. When not conducting search operations, it retains the capability to conduct the full range of specialist military engineer support. Prior to its current role, the squadron was a field support squadron role supporting 3 (UK) Divisional Engineer Group. As a Field Support Squadron its role was focused on the management and delivery of specialist military engineer logistic support. In Dec -April 1991 it deployed to the first Gulf War under the Command of Major Philip Crook RE and played a key engineer support role in the retaking of Kuwait. One of its most notable members, Lt

Philip Neame Lieutenant General Sir Philip Neame, (12 December 1888 – 28 April 1978) was a senior British Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Common ...

, is the only holder of both the Victoria Cross and Olympic gold medal.

Squadron badge

The squadron's unit badge is the Native American Indian Chieftain's head, with XV imprinted in the middle, denoting 15 Squadron. Whilst its actual origins are unknown, it is believed to represent its early work in Canada, where it was sent as part of the military construction force to build the

Rideau Canal The Rideau Canal, also known unofficially as the Rideau Waterway, connects Canada's capital city of Ottawa, Ontario, to Lake Ontario and the Saint Lawrence River at Kingston. It is 202 kilometres long. The name ''Rideau'', French for "curtain", ...

Squadron history

The Royal Warrant of 27 April 1825 authorised the formation of a service company of the Royal Sappers and Miners for service at Portsmouth. After training at Chatham, the new company, the 15th, moved to Portsmouth. Since its formation 15 Squadron has been amalgamated and disbanded many times, only to be reformed ready to take on a new roles. Its history is one that includes service in almost all of the United Kingdom's major conflicts over a period of history spanning nearly 190 years.

Rideau Canal

On 26 March 1827 a Royal Warrant was issued that ordered the augmentation of two companies of 81 men each for works on the

. The officer commanding the 15th was Captain Victor. When the company was up to strength it sailed on the transport ship "Southworth" and landed in Canada on 1 June 1827. The

was to run between the Ottawa River Kingston. It was to provide a link between Upper and Lower Canada that would secure it from attack by the United States, Lt Col John By RE was selected to carry out the project, and, by the spring of 1827, had completed his survey of the proposed route and had got it approved by the Earl of Dalhousier's land beside the Ottawa river. This settlement was named Bytown and the project headquarters was set up there. 15 Company lived in a barracks at Bytown on the present site of the Ottawa Parliament buildings. Sadly, during the construction of the canal, 21 members of the squadron perished. Lt Col By, the designer of the canal, is quoted as saying to the governor general of Canada: "''I have the honour to report that I find the greater part of Captain Victors’ 5thCompany such intelligent and well instructed men, that they are of the greatest use to me''".

Previous unit titles

15 Squadron has undergone many transformations during its service, this is a list of all known titles used in its history. * Squadron reformed in Sep 2019 as 15 Field Squadron (Explosive Ordnance Disposal and Search) * Squadron disbanded in 2013 * 15 Field Squadron (Search) (re-titled in 2011) * 15 Field Support Squadron (re-titled in 2000) * 15 Field Park Squadron (re-titled in 1992) * 15 Field Support Squadron (re-titled in 1977) * 15 Headquarters Squadron (re-titled in 1972) * 15 Field Support Squadron (re-titled in 1968) * 15 Field Park Squadron (re-titled in 1960) * 15 Corps Field Park Squadron (re-titled in 1958) * 15 Field Park Squadron (re-formed in 1950 from elements of 46 Field Park Squadron) * Sent into suspended animation in 1949 * 15th Field Park Company (re-titled in 1926) (part of British Expeditionary Force 1940) * 15 Fortress Company (re-titled in 1919) * 15th Field Company (First World War part of 8th Division) * 15th Fortress Company (re-titled in 1885) based in Gibraltar * 15 Service Company, Royal Sappers and Miners (1825)

Operational history

* First World War as part of 8th Division * Second World War – D-Day, *

Operation TELIC Operation Telic (Op TELIC) was the codename under which all of the United Kingdom's military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on ...

2 *

3 *

7 * Operation HERRICK 12 15 Field Support Squadron was the first Royal Engineer squadron to deploy to Afghanistan with the new Talisman counter- IED system * Operation Olympics 2012

First World War

15th Field Company, part of 8th Division, commanded by Captain PK Betty. Served on the Somme from July to November 1916. 15th Field Company participated in the Battle of Asine (27 May to 2 June 1918), where it suffered heavy casualties. Took part in the attack on Neuve Chapelle (March, 1915) supporting 24th Brigade. List of Battles which 15 Squadron RE participated in: ; 1914 *18 Dec, Neuve Chapelle (Moated Grange Attack) ; 1915 *10–13 Mar,

Battle of Neuve Chapelle The Battle of Neuve Chapelle (10–13 March 1915) took place in the First World War in the Artois region of France. The attack was intended to cause a rupture in the German lines, which would then be exploited with a rush to the Aubers Ridge and ...

*9 May,

Battle of Aubers Ridge The Battle of Aubers (Battle of Aubers Ridge) was a British offensive on the Western Front on 9 May 1915 during the First World War. The battle was part of the British contribution to the Second Battle of Artois, a Franco-British offensive int ...

and Attack at Fromelles *25 Sep, Bois Grenier ; 1916 *

Battle of the Somme The Battle of the Somme ( French: Bataille de la Somme), also known as the Somme offensive, was a battle of the First World War fought by the armies of the British Empire and French Third Republic against the German Empire. It took place bet ...

:: 1 Jul, Battle of Albert :: 23–30 Oct, Attack on Le Transloy ; 1917 *4 Mar, Bouchavesnes *14 Mar–5 Apr, German retreat to the Hindenburg Line *

Battle of Passchendaele The Third Battle of Ypres (german: link=no, Dritte Flandernschlacht; french: link=no, Troisième Bataille des Flandres; nl, Derde Slag om Ieper), also known as the Battle of Passchendaele (), was a campaign of the First World War, fought by t ...

(also known as the Third Battle of Ypres) :: 31 Jul–1 Aug, Battle of Pilckem Ridge :: 31 Jul, Attack on Westhock :: 16–18 Aug, Battle of Langenmarch :: 2 Dec, Assault of Southern Hedoult ; 1918 *

Second Battle of the Somme The Second Battle of the Somme of 1918 was fought during the First World War on the Western Front from late August to early September, in the basin of the River Somme. It was part of a series of successful counter-offensives in response to th ...

:: 23 Mar, Battle of St Quentin :: 24–25 Mar, Actions at the Somme Crossing :: 26–27 Mar, Battle of Rosieres :: 24–25 Apr, Villers Bretonneux :: 27 May–6 Jun, Battle of Aisne :: 26–30 Aug, Battle of the Scarpe :: 17 Oct, Capture of Douai

Second World War

Participated in D-Day as part of 3rd British Division, landing on Sword Beach, commanded by Major HC Dykes. List of Battles which 15 Squadron RE participated in: ; 1940 *26–28 May, Ypres – Comines Canal ; 1944 *6 Jun, Normandy Landings *4–18 Jul, Caen *18–23 Jul, Bourguebus Ridge *30 Jul–9 Aug, Mount Pincon *17–27 Sep, The Nederriyn ; 1945 *8 Feb–10 Mar, The Rhineland *23 Mar–1 Apr, The Rhine

Ripon

Both the Corps of Royal Engineers and 15 Squadron have a long relationship with the city of

Ripon Ripon () is a cathedral city in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England. The city is located at the confluence of two tributaries of the River Ure, the Laver and Skell. Historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, the city ...

, North Yorkshire. 15 Squadron first arrived in the city in December 1958 following its deployment to

Christmas Island Christmas Island, officially the Territory of Christmas Island, is an Australian external territory comprising the island of the same name. It is located in the Indian Ocean, around south of Java and Sumatra and around north-west of the ...

supporting nuclear-weapons testing that was conducted on the Islands. It arrived as part of the re-location of 38 Corps Engineer Regiment (which included 48 and 63 Field Squadrons, and later 12 Squadron). In 1964 the squadron was tasked with levelling of the ground for a new cemetery in Ripon. In 1991 the Sqn deployed to the Gulf War as part of the Coalition to retake Kuwait, it was commanded by Major Philip Crook RE.

Notable members of the Squadron

Philip Neame VC
The squadron's most famous member who on 18 December 1914 won the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

as lieutenant in 15th Field Company. He later went on to reach the rank of lieutenant general in the

and is the only

recipient to ever win an

Olympic Gold medal Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

, which he achieved in the 1924 Olympic Games. The citation for his Victoria Cross said: "''For conspicuous bravery on the 19th December 1914 near Neuve Chapelle, when notwithstanding the very heavy rifle fire and bomb throwing by the enemy, he succeeded in holding them back and rescuing all the wounded men whom it was possible to move''" He was decorated with the VC by HM King George V at Windsor Castle on 19 July 1915. In 2012, the squadron deployed a troop to provide personnel as a venue security force for the

2012 London Olympic Games The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. In honour of Philip Neame's achievement, this troop was named Neame Troop and was commanded by a Royal Engineer lieutenant.

Honours and awards

The following is a list of honours and awards earned by members of the squadron. ;

:: Lt P Neame VC (19 Dec 1914) ;

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...

:: Maj PK Betty DSO ;

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

:: Capt RC McNeille MC :: Maj CV Strong MC :: Maj F Lambert MC :: A/Maj HC Hillman MC ;

Military Medal The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award ...

:: Sgt Palmer Aug (1916) :: Sgt Dare Aug (1916) :: Sgt Parks Aug (1916) ;

Distinguished Conduct Medal The Distinguished Conduct Medal was a decoration established in 1854 by Queen Victoria for gallantry in the field by other ranks of the British Army. It is the oldest British award for gallantry and was a second level military decoration, ranki ...

:: Spr HG Catlin (10 Mar 1915) :: Sgt EN Davey (1 Jan 1918) :: Spr T Edwards (1 Apr 1918) :: Sgt PJ Frankum (22 Oct 1917) :: Sgt W Hales (3 Jun 1918) :: LCpl J Jennings (1 Apr 1915) :: Spr T Jones (1 Apr 1915) :: Sgt (A/CSM) T O’Brien (3 Oct 1918) :: LCpl OV Poulton (1 Apr 1915) :: Sgt (A/CSM) HW Richardson (4 Jun 1917) :: Spr G Smith (23 Sep 1915), (Bar to DCM as a Cpl) 22 Sep 1916

References

{{Reflist

External links

www.army.mod.uk/royalengineers

29 EOD & Search Group at www.mod.uk Squadrons of the Royal Engineers Military units and formations established in the 1820s