176 (Abu Klea) Battery Royal Artillery is the junior currently-existent regular

battery Battery most often refers to: * Electric battery, a device that provides electrical power * Battery (crime), a crime involving unlawful physical contact Battery may also refer to: Energy source *Automotive battery, a device to provide power t ...

of the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

. Its name is pronounced "One Seven Six", and the battery is commonly referred to as "The Abus", and its members as "Abus", after the battery's Honour Title. The battery is one of the sub-units of

26th Regiment Royal Artillery 26th Regiment Royal Artillery is a regiment of the Royal Artillery in the British Army. The regiment is equipped with MLRS and is 3rd (United Kingdom) Division's divisional fires regiment. History The regiment was formed from 4th Field Regiment ...

, 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 ...

. It was formed in 1860 and since then has participated in many campaigns, most notably the

Battle of Abu Klea The Battle of Abu Klea, or the Battle of Abu Tulayh took place between the dates of 16 and 18 January 1885, at Abu Klea, Sudan, between the British Desert Column and Mahdist forces encamped near Abu Klea. The Desert Column, a force of approxim ...

in 1885, where Gunner Smith earned a

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 ...

and later its Honour Title.

History

5 Battery, 15 Brigade, Royal Artillery was officially raised in

Gosport Gosport ( ) is a town and non-metropolitan borough on the south coast of Hampshire, South East England. At the 2011 Census, its population was 82,662. Gosport is situated on a peninsula on the western side of Portsmouth Harbour, opposite t ...

on 1 May 1860 by Captain J. de Havilland, although in reality it first paraded on the 23rd. It spent the next few years garrisoned variously in Ireland,

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained throu ...

, Halifax,

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, the

Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...

and

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

, without being involved in any conflicts. In 1884, the Nile Expeditionary Force was organised with the purpose of relieving General Gordon and his British forces at

Khartoum Khartoum or Khartum ( ; ar, الخرطوم, Al-Khurṭūm, din, Kaartuɔ̈m) is the capital of Sudan. With a population of 5,274,321, its metropolitan area is the largest in Sudan. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile, flowing n ...

in the

Sudan Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...

. Now renamed as part of an RA reorganisation, 1 Battery, Southern Division, Royal Artillery joined the force at Cairo and equipped with the 2.5 inch RML Mountain Gun (the "Screw Gun"), and camels for transport. While the main part of the force headed up the

River Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered the longest rive ...

by steamer, a camel corps of about two thousand men was detached to move directly cross-country, at best speed, bypassing the waterfalls along the Nile. Half of the battery was detached to support this column. On 16 January 1885, a force of approximately 12,000 Mahdists was encountered by the column and engaged on the morning of 17 January in the

. During the battle, the battery's guns were pushed out to the edge of the British square to fire at the charging enemy. The guns each managed to fire one round of

case-shot Canister shot is a kind of anti-personnel artillery ammunition. Canister shot has been used since the advent of gunpowder-firing artillery in Western armies. However, canister shot saw particularly frequent use on land and at sea in the vario ...

, cutting down many of the enemy, before they reached the square and engaged in hand-to-hand fighting. Lieutenant D. J. Guthrie was attacked by several Sudanese and was seriously wounded in the leg. One of his soldiers, Gunner Alfred Smith, saved his life by killing his assailant with the

handspike A handspike is a metal bar or pipe that is used as a lever for prying or leverage, similar to a crowbar. Handspike is also an archaic term for a bar or lever, generally of wood, used in a windlass or capstan, for heaving anchor, and, in modifie ...

from a gun, and remained standing over him fighting off others. For this act of bravery Gunner Smith was awarded the Victoria Cross, although Lieutenant Guthrie was to die of his wounds. Other decorations for the Battery during this action include two

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 ...

s and two brevet promotions for the officers present. On 22 June 1955 176 Battery was awarded the Honour Title "Abu Klea" in recognition of its distinguished service in this action. After service in Egypt and the Sudan the battery was stationed again in Malta, then posted to

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

in 1890, returning to Malta in 1895 and to the United Kingdom 1898. While in the United Kingdom the battery re-roled as 15 Company,

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

and was sent to Ireland until the First World War. There are no records within the battery's own archives of its activities during the Great War. Afterwards it spent time as Q Coast Battery manning the

coastal defences Coastal management is defence against flooding and erosion, and techniques that stop erosion to claim lands. Protection against rising sea levels in the 21st century is crucial, as sea level rise accelerates due to climate change. Changes in s ...

of the United Kingdom, and as 20th Pack Battery in Hong Kong with

3.7-inch mountain howitzer Ordnance, QF 3.7-inch howitzer is a mountain gun, used by British and Commonwealth armies in the First and Second World Wars, and between the wars. History The British Indian Army first requested a modern mountain gun in 1906 to replace the BL 10 ...

s and still using

mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two pos ...

s for transport, the last British battery to do so. At the start of the Second World War, the battery, now renamed 120 Field Battery and part of 32 Regiment, served in France with the British Expeditionary Force and was part of the retreat and evacuation from

Dunkirk Dunkirk (french: Dunkerque ; vls, label=French Flemish, Duunkerke; nl, Duinkerke(n) ; , ;) is a commune in the department of Nord in northern France.25 pounders, moved to the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

in 1941 and took part in the

Anglo-Iraqi War The Anglo-Iraqi War was a British-led Allied military campaign during the Second World War against the Kingdom of Iraq under Rashid Gaylani, who had seized power in the 1941 Iraqi coup d'état, with assistance from Germany and Italy. The c ...

, the

Syria–Lebanon Campaign The Syria–Lebanon campaign, also known as Operation Exporter, was the Allied invasion of Syria and Lebanon (then controlled by Vichy France) in June and July 1941, during the Second World War. The French had ceded autonomy to Syria in Septembe ...

, and then later the North African campaign where it participated in

Jock column During the Second World War, Jock columns were small combined arms groups of armoured cars, artillery and motorised infantry, generally drawn from the British 7th Armoured Division. They were used in the Western Desert Campaign by the British Ar ...

s. During the British retreat to

El Alamein El Alamein ( ar, العلمين, translit=al-ʿAlamayn, lit=the two flags, ) is a town in the northern Matrouh Governorate of Egypt. Located on the Arab's Gulf, Mediterranean Sea, it lies west of Alexandria and northwest of Cairo. , it had ...

, 32 Regiment were tasked to hold Fuka Aerodrome against overwhelming

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

forces while the

RAF The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

evacuated their aircraft. During this engagement, the regiment, including the linked 115/120 Field Battery, suffered massive casualties. The survivors made their way back to Cairo, where 115/120 was reformed with reinforcements, and went on to take part in Montgomery's successful counteroffensive. 120 Field Battery continued to serve with 25 pounders until the Allied advance reached

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

in 1943. Here the battery was re-equipped with 155mm Long Tom howitzers, became 120 Medium Battery and served in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, most notably at

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first h ...

in April 1944. The battery later played a part in the final battles in northwest Europe in 1945, and with ironic symmetry was in Dunkirk when the war in Europe ended. It spent some time in the

occupation of Germany Germany was already de facto occupied by the Allies from the real fall of Nazi Germany in World War II on 8 May 1945 to the establishment of the East Germany on 7 October 1949. The Allies (United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and France ...

before returning to the UK. In 1947 120 Field Battery was renamed 176 Field Battery, by which name it is still known today, bar changes in functional designation and the addition of the Honour Title. It was part of 45th Field Regiment RA, itself part of 29th Independent Infantry Brigade which deployed to Korea under UN command after the outbreak of the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. The battery fought in Korea throughout the war, including at the

Battle of the Imjin River The Battle of the Imjin River ( fil, Labanan sa Ilog Imjin), also known as the Battle of Solma-ri ( ko, 설마리 전투) or Battle of Gloster Hill () in South Korea, or as Battle of Xuemali () in China, took place 22–25 April 1951 during th ...

in support of the

Royal Ulster Rifles The Royal Irish Rifles (became the Royal Ulster Rifles from 1 January 1921) was an infantry rifle regiment of the British Army, first created in 1881 by the amalgamation of the 83rd (County of Dublin) Regiment of Foot and the 86th (Royal County ...

. The Battery Sergeant Major and a

subaltern Subaltern may refer to: *Subaltern (postcolonialism), colonial populations who are outside the hierarchy of power * Subaltern (military), a primarily British and Commonwealth military term for a junior officer * Subalternation, going from a univer ...

were decorated for bravery during this action. 176 Battery spent most of the post-war years until 1995, garrisoned in Sennelager, near Paderborn in Germany as part of the

BAOR There have been two formations named British Army of the Rhine (BAOR). Both were originally occupation forces in Germany, one after the First World War and the other after the Second World War. Both formations had areas of responsibility located a ...

. It had various equipments at different times, including the 25 pounder, which were used on active service in Korea. They returned to UK from Germany in 1962 and were stationed in Shoeburyness, training on the 105mm pack howitzer, prior to joining 28 Commonwealth Brigade stationed in Malacca, Malaya. The 105mm pack howitzer was used between 1963 and 1966 in

Malaya Malaya refers to a number of historical and current political entities related to what is currently Peninsular Malaysia in Southeast Asia: Political entities * British Malaya (1826–1957), a loose collection of the British colony of the Straits ...

and

Borneo Borneo (; id, Kalimantan) is the third-largest island in the world and the largest in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, and eas ...

during the Indonesia-Malaysia confrontation. They returned from Malaya to Shoeburyness to be equipped with the 155 mm howitzer and were subsequently deployed to Dortmund in Germany in 1966, where they were equipped with the nuclear-armed M109 Self Propelled 155mm howitzer. During these decades the battery also completed five emergency tours of

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

in the internal security role. The battery last changed role and equipment in 1990 with the adoption of the

Multiple Launch Rocket System A multiple rocket launcher (MRL) or multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) is a type of rocket artillery system that contains multiple launchers which are fixed to a single platform, and shoots its rocket ordnance in a fashion similar to a volle ...

(MLRS). The MLRS was hurried into service so that 39 Regiment, now 176 Battery's parent unit, could deploy on

Operation Granby Operation Granby, commonly abbreviated Op Granby, was the code name given to the British military operations during the 1991 Gulf War. 53,462 members of the British Armed Forces were deployed during the conflict. The total cost of operations wa ...

to use it in support of the Coalition Forces during the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

. The battery therefore has the distinction of being the only battery of the Royal Artillery to have participated in both major UN actions since 1945, namely Korea and the Gulf. During the remainder of the 1990s, the battery completed two tours with the UN in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

. In 1995 it moved with 39 Regiment permanently back to the UK, and in 1999 completed another tour of Northern Ireland, and in 2006-2007 another in Cyprus.

Present day

176 (Abu Klea) Battery was one of the constituent batteries of

39 Regiment Royal Artillery 39 Regiment Royal Artillery was part of the Royal Artillery. Its name is pronounced "three nine", The Regiment was one of the Depth fire units of 1st Artillery Brigade, part of the British Army. It was formed in 1947, and placed into suspended a ...

, which was based in the UK near

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

. It is still equipped with MLRS and deployed in-role with its launchers to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

in 2008 as part of the ongoing conflict. In February 2015, when 39 Regiment Royal Artillery was disbanded, 176 (Abu Klea) Battery moved to join 19 Regiment Royal Artillery and was subsequently moved into

in preparation for their move to Larkhill in 2019.

Traditions

Abu Klea Day is held on 22 June. This is the anniversary of the awarding of the Honour Title "Abu Klea" in 1955. It is the primary date of celebration for the battery. The battery's emblem is the kicking mule, in recognition of the important role played by mules in its history. It was reinstated on 22 June 1993, Abu Klea Day. The battery also celebrates its birthday on 1 May, the anniversary of its foundation in 1860. The other date of significance is 17 January, the anniversary of the Battle of Abu Klea. {{Use dmy dates, date=June 2017 Royal Artillery batteries Military units and formations established in 1860